


Notice Me, Mr. Loey

by baeconandeggs, chanbabie



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Comedy, Fluff, M/M, Romance, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:29:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 26,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24497962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baeconandeggs/pseuds/baeconandeggs, https://archiveofourown.org/users/chanbabie/pseuds/chanbabie
Summary: The director of LOEY Studios has no time to deal with his admirers. But what happens if a certain strawberry head is very persistent? Would he get noticed?
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol
Comments: 53
Kudos: 429
Collections: BAE2020





	Notice Me, Mr. Loey

**Author's Note:**

> **Prompt:** BAE187  
>  **Disclaimer: baeconandeggs/the mods is/are not the author/s of this story. Authors will be credited and tagged after reveals.** The celebrities' names/images are merely borrowed and do not represent who the celebrities are in real life. No offense is intended towards them, their families or friends. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this fictional work. No copyright infringement is intended.
> 
> **Author's Note:** at the end

Chaotic. If there ever comes a time when someone would ask Kim Jongdae about the state of his workplace on a Monday morning, that would be the best answer he would think of. Chaotic. Whenever his co-worker and best friend, Byun Baekhyun, clocks in and bolts into the café, scrambling his way to man the counter, even though his job description states "in charge of baking pastries, making coffee and washing dishes in the kitchen", chaos ensues. 

Jongdae doesn't mind though. At least not anymore. He remembers the days when Baekhyun used to panic and yell all over the place, and it would startle Jongdae and then get pulled into a panic frenzy with his co-worker. He would run around the café trying to help Baekhyun in any way he can just to make sure his best friend doesn’t end up crying in the kitchen. 

One day, Jongdae woke up and realized he doesn’t actually benefit a thing from helping Baekhyun every morning, nor does it contribute to his self-enhancement goals. He just didn’t want to have anything to do with Baekhyun’s crazy antics. 

Jongdae is actually a good best friend to Baekhyun, because no matter how crazy Baekhyun gets, he doesn’t actually leave him. He just leaves him alone. He doesn’t intervene in Baekhyun’s businesses anymore—only those that do not involve his best friend’s daydreams. He's gotten used to the mess that is Byun Baekhyun on Mondays. 

And besides, he finds it quite convenient for himself. Even just for the first hour of their shift, when Baekhyun seems like he’s facing a phenomenon, Jongdae welcomes his day with a stress-free morning. Chaotic environment. But stress-free.

It’s not really because there are many customers. The café is pretty much empty during early mornings, except for those running off to work employees who need their boost of caffeine to go. Although the café is not too crowded on most days, it already earned a few frequent customers. They were in it for the not too expensive but pretty good coffee.

Jongdae takes a seat on the stool at one side of the bar, legs crossed as he pulls out his smart phone and browses through memes he’s missed since he went to bed last night. He chuckles lightly at one video of a dog trying to jump off the couch but misses badly. He then grabs his cup of hot chocolate and takes a ceremonious sip while he swipes up to view the next trending cat video. Ah yes, mornings like this. 

On the other side of the bar though is a totally different scenario. A catastrophe. Coins are clanking and dropping everywhere, while the cash register is being punched repeatedly because it doesn’t budge open. A very frantic, very panicky Baekhyun who’s trying to pin his nameplate is screaming his lungs out, “Where the hell is my apron!?” He yells to no one in particular, even though there is another human being inside the café with him; said human being is busy cackling at a video of a man tripping on his own two feet and not minding Baekhyun and his predicament. 

Baekhyun does a double take on the clock and the door, running around the café when he realizes there’s 2 minutes left before 8 in the morning.

"It’s almost time oh my god where is that damn apron?" The panic heightens. 

He runs back to the kitchen and squeals when he finally finds the brown faux-leather apron with the boxes of burger buns delivered earlier in the day, waiting to be stacked by employee Byun. They can wait a little longer, he thought to himself. He quickly puts on the apron then sprints outside to the mirrored walls to check on his look, fixing his collar and his bubblegum pink hair. The flustered barista jogs back to the cash register trying to calm himself. He looks down and smiles, patting his pastel pink sticky notepad tucked on the side of the counter, today’s good morning note neatly scribbled on the piece of paper. He flashes a bright smile, signature Byun Baekhyun. He’s good. He’s ready. And now he waits.

As if on cue, a very familiar black sedan pulls over across the street of their café. Baekhyun calls it his lucky morning because he got to work in time to see and experience this. The moment the door of the driver’s side opened, Baekhyun’s breathing stopped. Cue Boys Over Flowers OST, wind effect and slow motion. Almost paradise, indeed. There he is. The man of Baekhyun’s dreams. All six foot of glorious elegance and knockout gorgeous, any man and woman would desire to have. Yes, seeing him alight his vehicle in the morning is a whole experience and Baekhyun does not waste any chances he can get. 

Mr. Loey. He’s wearing a faded denim jacket today. A nicely fitted white shirt inside, tucked into his ripped black jeans, perfectly showcasing the length of his legs. His black hair is the same as always, pushed back to show off his beautiful forehead which Baekhyun wants to shower with kisses. 

Baekhyun spends a lot of his time daydreaming about Mr. Loey that he already came up with a list on where he would like to kiss Mr. Loey the most. He calls it “The Loey List.” It’s a varying list depending on Baekhyun’s mood or on Mr. Loey’s look for the day. The ears, of course, tops the list. Sometimes he thinks Mr. Loey’s cheeks deserve more kisses because they're extra plump and full. Other times it’s his collarbones whenever the director wears a loose shirt and the sexy bone makes an appearance. A rare moment. Baekhyun swears he gets a heart attack whenever it happens.

The daydreaming barista shakes his head. This is not a safe train of thought to venture. At least not at this time, when the man of his dreams is about to enter the café.

Iced Americano, two shots, with a pump of toffee nut. Grande sized.

Baekhyun knows the drink by heart. He swears he can even make it while asleep. It’s what Mr. Loey orders every day at 8 in the morning before he heads to the studio just across the café. 

Mr. Loey owns that studio. Easy to tell because the name LOEY Studios says it all. Famous artists come here to record their songs and Mr. Loey personally produces the albums. Baekhyun knows this much. At least that’s the information he got from observing through the café’s glass panes and from his co-barista, Jongdae, who has been working at the cafe longer than he has. Baekhyun thinks it’s a really cool job, being the director of your own studio. He can only wonder how attractive Mr. Loey looks when he’s working. 

The pink-haired barista chants the drink in his head while the man he’s been waiting, walks his way to the café. The door chimes, and the director steps in, with his phone against his ear. Looks like he’s already working before office hours actually start—not exactly a new sight for the barista.

Mr. Loey slowly marches in and stops in front of the cash register, looking elsewhere. Baekhyun flashes a bright big smile, waiting for the customer to order, even though he already knows what he’s ordering. The director glances at the barista for a second, eyebrows furrowed as he speaks with the person on the other line. Something along the lines of recording day and equipment delivery, is what Baekhyun picks up from their conversation. Such a busy man. The barista clears his throat to catch the other’s attention, which he thinks worked because the director paused, pulling the phone away from his ear.

"One grande iced americano, two shots, with a pump of toffee nut." The way Mr. Loey speaks is like coffee, smooth and comforting. 

It’s a good thing Baekhyun got the drink memorized. He did not understand what the director just said because he was too busy appreciating the deep tone of Mr. Loey’s voice. The barista’s cheeks bloom into a pink blush and he hopes the director would not notice. 

Lucky for Baekhyun, Mr. Loey was too absorbed with his phone call. After placing down his card on the counter, he immediately goes back to his conversation with the person on the other line. 

Baekhyun takes his time processing the order into the computer then proceeds to make the drink he knows too well to mess up. He steals a few glances at his customer, appreciating the manly features up close. It seems like Mr. Loey’s hair is getting long. He notices the ends of it pushed all the way to the back of his head. Baekhyun wonders how long it takes for Mr. Loey to fix his hair in the morning. He chuckles softly at the thought of the amount of hair products he uses. And maybe he also wants to imagine how the director looks without all of it. 

After a few minutes, the drink is ready. Baekhyun carefully puts the lid on, slides the sleeve into the cup and sticks the pink note perfectly in the middle. The barista smiles prettily at his creation. He grabs a few napkins and their signature pink straw to lay on top of the drink before handing it out to his customer. Mr. Loey grabs the drink and mumbles a soft “thanks” before heading out of the café and into his studio. 

Baekhyun sighs dreamily, and quite loudly, as he watches the director’s back. Aaand that’s Jongdae’s signal that Loey time is over. It’s time for him to reclaim his spot behind the counter. 

It wasn't a big secret that Baekhyun has a crush on the director of LOEY studios. His best friend knows how much and how often Baekhyun daydreams about his dates with Mr. Loey, that he has to yell at his co-barista on a daily basis just to shake him off from his trance.

Baekhyun is quite positive that Mr. Loey knows about his big fat crush on him too. It's not so hard to notice when you're the only one who gets free pastries or free coffee upgrades once or twice a week. Especially when you're the only one who gets love notes stuck on your coffee cup every morning. 

Chanyeol first noticed it when he stepped into his studio one morning, after getting his morning dose of caffeine from across the street, and saw his friend slash receptionist slash secretary, Oh Sehun, holding a cup from the same café where Baekhyun works at.

"What does yours say?" He asked Sehun out of curiosity.

The receptionist only furrowed his brows and gave the director a weird look.

"Your coffee? What does it say?" Chanyeol further inquired, jerking his head to the direction of the coffee cup sitting on Sehun's desk.

Sehun followed where his boss was looking at and figured it was his coffee he was asking about. He picked up his cup and looked at it closely.

"Daei café...?" Sehun slowly read the words around the logo, a cloud doodle right in the middle of it. He turned the cup and continued to read while giving his boss a weird look, "Decaf? Shots? Syrup? Milk? Cu-"

"Okay, that's enough." Chanyeol cut him when he realized Sehun did not get the same note he received.

Baekhyun never misses a day. Every morning, he sticks a post-it note on Chanyeol's cup, with either a simple good morning written on it or a cute puppy doodle doing random things like reading a book or singing his heart out. It was cute, Baekhyun thought so. He just hopes Mr. Loey thinks the same.

Except he has no idea what the director thinks of his notes, or of his coffee, or of him in particular. Mr. Loey rarely smiles or talks to him except when ordering his drink. He's heard him talk on his phone on most days, but he still seemed too serious. Baekhyun has admired the director's stoic image and professionalism but sometimes he wonders what he would look like if Mr. Loey actually showed other expressions besides the serious one.

He doesn't remember vividly how it happened or where he got the confidence from, but Baekhyun made a promise to himself he would make Mr. Loey smile one day. Hence, the indirect invitations to go on a date.

What seemed to be some cute good morning greetings slowly became pick-up lines and appreciation notes towards Mr. Loey. Sometimes they were really cheesy, Baekhyun realizes too late but he never regrets. He just hopes Mr. Loey takes a little bit of his time to read the note and consider the offer. And maybe not file a complaint against him for being a creep.

Mr. Loey is one of the most attractive bachelors in Seoul. He easily makes heads turn because of the way he carries himself, the charisma, the handsome features, the height, etcetera. He owns a studio and produces albums of famous artists, so he must have the talent and money that goes with it. 

Baekhyun isn’t the only one who vies for the director’s attention. It has been a frequent observation of Baekhyun to see artists and non-artists sending heart eyes towards Mr. Loey whenever they meet up in front of the studio. To Baekhyun’s surprise, the director’s face remained stoic. Business is just business, he presumed.

Baekhyun tried to strike up conversations with Mr. Loey whenever he visited the cafe. But whenever he does, it’s either the director looks too busy, too tired, too unfriendly. Or Baekhyun gets nervous to even start talking. Before he knows it, Mr. Loey is on his way back to the studio. 

On days when Mr. Loey doesn't drop by the café, Baekhyun understands that was the nature of his job. The first time it happened, he got worried if the director got sick and did not make it to work. With hopes of knowing the condition of his crush, he crossed the street during his break and stepped into the studio for the first time. That was also the first time he met receptionist Oh Sehun.

"Uhh...excuse me?" He quietly approached the receptionist's desk, noticing how busy the man was as he continuously typed something on his laptop. He noticed the handsome side profile, the elegant posture, and the nice black hair parted in the middle, some locks softly brushing against his forehead. This guy was too handsome for his own good. With no reaction from said man, Baekhyun cleared his throat and repeated his question, a little louder than before. The receptionist, Oh Sehun, as Baekhyun quietly read what's written on the man's name plate pinned on the left side of his shirt, looked up at him and gave him "the look". That's when he noticed how nice this man's eyebrows were, with the way they were shaped and the way they curved up. It was very expressive. And Baekhyun was intimidated.

"Um… I’m sorry to disturb you. But...can I ask a question?" Baekhyun tried to sound as polite as possible. 

The receptionist only blinked twice. He's not really the friendly type huh, Baekhyun thought.

The barista fiddled nervously with his fingers but proceeded to ask bravely, "The director...is he sick?"

Upon hearing the question, Sehun narrowed his gaze and gave the other man a suspicious look, to which the barista widened his eyes in shock.

"Who are you and why are you asking me such a weird question? Do you have an appointment with the director? Are you his stalker?" Sehun raided him with the questions, tone shrouded with vigilance. 

The questions were a bit judging to Baekhyun, but maybe there was some truth to the words being thrown at him.

_Stalker. A person who pursues someone obsessively and aggressively to the point of harassment._

Baekhyun left his post at work and went over to the studio asking for the man of his interest. At this rate, he thought he would really become a stalker. Minus the harassment part of course; he doesn’t think he’d go that far.

"Do you like coffee?" Baekhyun suddenly blurted out at the receptionist. He was panicking a bit and he was being accused of something he was not. That was dangerous. What Baekhyun wanted was to actually meet the director and if he ended up getting banned at the studio, his dreams would definitely fall into ashes. So, Baekhyun settled for the easiest solution he could think of: Bribery.

The receptionist was quick-witted, picking up the visitor's intention. He crossed his arms against his chest and shook his head, answering in a rather condescending tone, "I like bubble tea more."

So much authority from a guy who likes drinking bubble tea. 

Baekhyun took a deep breath and leaned a little closer. "Let me ask you again, do you like free coffee?" There was obvious emphasis on the word “free”.

Sehun’s eyes narrowed and he leaned closer. "Keep talking.”

"My name is Byun Baekhyun and I work at the coffee shop right across the street. You already went there a couple of times." Baekhyun can now grin, knowing he captured the receptionist’s interest.

"I haven’t seen you there. I only know Jongdae hyung and--” Sehun stopped himself, clearing his throat. He straightened up and pointed at the stranger accusingly. “Are you a stalker disguising to be a barista?" 

Baekhyun’s jaw dropped. He did not come there to be attacked like that. 

"Okay, that's a little harsh, you’re just judging me so easily, without evidence. I. Am. Not. A. Stalker.” The barista stressed out every word. 

“You come in here for the first time, asking private information about the director, and you expect me to think you’re here to bring joy to my life? Are. You. Nuts?” Sehun mimics the stranger, stressing out each word of his last question. 

The receptionist had a point. Baekhyun was no one but a stranger. Asking so bluntly about the director’s whereabouts was what a clumsy stalker would do. But he wasn’t one and he wanted to prove it so bad. He’s getting annoyed this was going out of his control so he opted to just spill the truth.

“Fine, I'll be honest here.” Baekhyun paused and took a deep breath. “I have a tiny bit of crush on your director." He stared at the receptionist hoping he’d believe him.

Sehun cracked up as if he's heard the most ridiculous thing. He kept laughing mockingly and to say the least, Baekhyun was hurt. But he wasn’t giving up just yet. He needed first-hand information on Mr. Loey and if the last thing to do is turn into a clown to this rude receptionist, then he's willing to do it. He had nothing to lose. Except his dignity, maybe.

Sehun watched the stalker stomp out of the studio with the biggest pout. What a baby, he thought. What he didn't expect a few minutes later was a cup of freshly-made iced coffee, that familiar logo printed on the front. It was from the café in front of the studio, brought to him by the same pouty stranger, except this time, he was wearing a stern expression on his face.

"Here's your free coffee. I told you I work at that coffee shop. Do you believe me now?" Baekhyun’s tone was authoritative and it gave the receptionist a shock.

It's so easy to get things you want with the help of bribery, Baekhyun believes so. After promising he'd supply the receptionist with free coffee, he secured a deal of getting valuable information about the director. That was the same day he learned Mr. Loey goes on important meetings sometimes, which explained why he wasn't there.

Baekhyun had one problem. What he thought was valuable information, was just random things about the director. Oh Sehun is not that easy to bribe. Knowing what time the director left the day before or what he had for lunch wasn’t enough information for Baekhyun to know more about the man of his dreams. He wants more. Maybe it’s time he meets with his boss to suggest adding bubble tea to their menu. 

To no avail, Baekhyun’s idea was rejected. “There’s no market in this side of town. Bubble teas are for children.” He remembers his boss strictly saying. 

“Yeah. Oh Sehun is a child.” Baekhyun huffs as he wipes one of the tables in the café. It’s already past 1pm and he still hasn’t seen Mr. Loey or his black car. It must be one of those “big meeting” days. Does this guy even get one day of rest? 

Baekhyun stills when an idea pops into his head. Hurriedly, he makes an iced caramel macchiato and slices a piece of chocolate cake to go. He crosses the street and finds the receptionist busily typing on his laptop again. 

“Hi there Sehunnie.” The sweet tone was necessary after finding out the guy was much younger than he is. And when there’s Mr. Loey information on the line, such an approach was helpful. 

Sehun greets with his usual “what do you want now?” look. He immediately notices the coffee and the box which piqued his curiosity because it’s the first time Baekhyun brought this kind of box. Baekhyun didn’t miss the interest in Sehun’s eyes and became hopeful his plan is going to work. 

Being the brat that he is, Sehun answers sternly. 

“Your crush is not in here today.”

Baekhyun shakes his head and places the two items on Sehun’s desk and smiles brightly.

“I know that. I just want to ask you something. You will answer, right?”

“What’s in the box?”

Baekhyun grins and happily opens the box for Sehun to see. He saw the spark in the younger’s face when he laid his eyes on the sweet treat but it was obvious he was trying to hold in his excitement. 

“What do you need, Hyung?”

“Tell me when Mr. Loey’s birthday is.”

“What? No, I cannot do that. That’s highly private. He’s capable of firing me and making my life miserable if he finds out I tell you these private information about him. Do you want me to perish, Hyung?!” The receptionist was already stomping his feet, wanting to prove a point to the barista. 

“But Sehunnie I especially baked this cake and I am giving it to you. For free. Do you not want the cake?”

“I-“ Sehun clears his throat and shakes his head. He’s clearly having a mind battle on what he should do, and looks like he’s having a hard time. 

Just then, a white Porsche parks in front of the café, catching the attention of the two. 

Both their eyes blew up wide and suddenly became frantic. 

“He’s here!” They say in unison. Heads turn quickly to look at each other with confused expressions. 

“You know him!?” Again, in unison. It was like a comical skit. These two. 

Baekhyun waves his hand in front. 

“Wait wait wait. Do you know him?” The barista asks one more time, pointing his finger to the direction of the car. 

Sehun, well he changed. His face blushed into a pink shade and suddenly, his stoic demeanor shifts into a shy schoolgirl’s. This is the first time Baekhyun sees this and to say the least, he is shocked.

And then it’s all clear to him. 

“Do you have a crush on my boss?!” He may have shouted a little loud, creating panic to the poor young Sehunnie, who dives to cover Baekhyun’s big mouth. Good thing he hasn’t stepped out of the car yet.

“Be quiet Hyung!”

Baekhyun giggles against the boy’s hand pulling it away after promising not to be loud again. “You do have a crush on him!” he whisper-shouts to the red-faced receptionist. 

Baekhyun has a smug face. 

It's so easy to get things you want with the help of bribery, Baekhyun believes so. With a huge grin and a skip to his step, he heads back to the café feeling giddy. 

Baekhyun learns that Mr. Loey’s birthday is on November 27th . He has two weeks to prepare. 

Meanwhile, the receptionist is left in a daze, writing in his most careful handwriting, the name “Kim Junmyeon” all over his notepad, and a lot of hearts around it. 

“You know it’s important you finish the whole album this week! I cannot believe I’m being blamed for something you did! No, it’s not an excuse that your model boyfriend came home from Paris and surprised you and wants to monopolise you for a whole weekend, Kyungsoo. That’s not how this industry works. We won’t be adjusting for you!” Chanyeol speaks...no yells into his phone on speaker as he maneuvers into the street where his studio is. 

“Just give me one more day Chanyeol. I promise I’ll be back tomorrow. I’ll be there really early and finish this album in no time.” Kyungsoo answered quite calmly on the other line. 

“Hyung, please let my baby have a rest, you know how much i missed him. And I missed you too, Hyung. I need you this Friday night to come to the party. That’s tomorrow okay? And please, you need to rest too, Mr. Director.” A different voice speaks up as the director parks his car in front of the studio. Chanyeol huffs in annoyance and slumps back in his car, holding his phone against his ear. His voice calms down two notches lower, pinching his nose and sighing heavily. 

“I missed you too, Jongin. But please, I need my artist to do what he’s supposed to do. You know, singing and all that? Please get him back tomorrow or you won’t see me at your party.” It was a soft threat, and Chanyeol knows his friends won’t take him seriously.

Chanyeol hears two excited giggles on the other line, making him chuckle. “Thanks Hyung! I knew we could count on you.”

Chanyeol smiles and rolls his eyes at his best friends’ antics. Just then, his eyes come across a poster with a very familiar name on it. “Alright alright lovebirds. Just...enjoy your time together. Don’t exhaust my artist, please. I’ll see you tomorrow, Soo. And you too Jongin.” 

He cuts the call and stares at the poster a little longer. So many strawberry and puppy doodles, he noticed. The director scoffs and snaps a quick photo of said poster before he steps out of his car and into his studio, ready to do some work. 

HAPPY LOEY DAY AT DAEI café

11/27 special

One day only promo!

Free coffee ALL DAY!

Free cake ALL DAY!

Free date with the cute barista! (Optional but highly recommended)

Only applies if today is your birthday ♡ 

  
  


Baekhyun slumps on the table after downing another shot of soju. He has the biggest pout on his face and is on the brink of crying. Usually, when he goes out for a drink after their shift at the café, he makes sure not to drink more than 10 shots of soju. Baekhyun knows he can handle his liquor well, he’s just a responsible drinker is all. Plus, he hates hangovers that’s why he takes only what he can get. 

Tonight is different though. Letting out the biggest sigh of the night, Baekhyun swirls the tiny glass on the table in front of him (who knows how many shots he’s already consumed), his other arm supporting his pouty face.

“He probably has seen it, Baek. Don’t be sad now.” Jongdae mumbles, mouth full of the ssam he carefully assembled for the last 2 minutes, patting his best friend's back slowly as he picks up three empty bottles of soju and calls out for the ahjumma to take them away. He then asks for two new ones and two more servings of meat to grill. Baekhyun watches his best friend in half-disgust, but he’s too sad right now to call him out for it. 

The sad barista takes a deep breath and lets out another sad whine. “But he didn’t even come by the café today. Not even in the morning. His car was there. He always comes to the café every morning. Why not today, Jongdae? Why?” The dramatic tone was there, the need for drama was questionable however. Before Baekhyun could break the glass he was holding, Jongdae took it away and refilled it with soju. 

“Maybe he has seen it.” Oh Sehun points out with a handful of peanuts, popping them into his mouth one at a time. 

How Sehun ended up drinking with them was an impulsive move from Jongdae. When Baekhyun was slumped in the coffee shop, Sehun entered to mock his best friend’s situation. Jongdae had the brightest idea to take Baekhyun drinking so as to forget about the sad fate of Happy Loey Day. And since Sehun is quite responsible for Baekhyun’s sadness, because it was him who gave the director’s birthday, he dragged him to drink as well. 

Baekhyun looks up at the receptionist with hopeful eyes. Oh Sehun may always be cold to him but Baekhyun believes he’s not one to lie. 

“But maybe he was grossed out, that's why he didn’t even come to the café.” And just like that, all hopes were shattered. Oh Sehun does not lie, but he also does not have a filter.

Baekhyun whines loudly because that idea was highly possible. His plan didn’t work out well and now he ruined every chance to actually be noticed by Mr. Loey. Noticing was the plan, and it worked. Scaring off was unexpected and he did just that. 

“I’m going to die a sad virgin. It was nice knowing you two. I hope you find true love in this lifetime.” Baekhyun slurs in his seat, obviously had too many shots already, reaching for his two friends’ faces. 

For a moment he falls silent. Blankly staring at the meat sizzling on the grill, faint murmurs of people in the background, his heavy eyelids fighting off the sleep. Baekhyun softly mumbles, “Yesterday, I messed up his drink. Instead of toffee nut, I pumped in caramel syrup. I did it on purpose. I know he knew. He stopped by the door after taking a sip. But he didn’t complain. He just went on out and into his studio. He didn’t even look back.” 

Jongdae frowns at his dramatic best friend. He knew Baekhyun’s attraction towards the director was strong, but he did not expect he’d be out drinking and consoling his co-barista because of a heartbreak from a non-existent relationship. He thinks it’s too much. As a good friend, it’s his duty to remind his best friend that he should not be grieving for this man he barely knew. Yes, Jongdae thinks he’s a good friend, and he’s going to put a stop to Baekhyun’s sorrow and obsession. 

Reaching to pat his friend’s shoulder, he clears his throat to prepare a stern approach to this problem. “Ya, Byun Bae…”

But he was cut off by another whine. 

“I know how you feel. Yesterday, I saw Mr. Kim Junmyeon. He was about to leave the café. So I ran out of the studio. I wanted to greet him goodbye. Maybe give him my number. Agree to a dinner date or something.” Sehun stops because of a hiccup then he takes a deep breath. Dramatic when drunk, this kid.

“But he didn’t even look my way. He just drove off. He… He took my heart with him.” Sehun’s two hands are suddenly on Baekhyun’s shoulders, caging him in.

Is that kid crying now? Jongdae wonders incredulously.

More whining follows. Now they’re both crying. This is a nightmare, Jongdae concludes and just went on to down more shots of soju and meat.

“My boss, he’s just like that all the time. He looks like an angel but he’s actually a child of Satan. The other day he kept me in his office for three hours just to scold me for leaving the café for ten minutes. I left for ten minutes! He scolded me for three freaking hours!” Baekhyun complains with four fingers in the air, the words slurring but still comprehensible. Oh Sehun, on the other hand, looks at the barista with the brightest eyes, too interested to hear stories about the café owner.

“What did he tell you?” Sehun’s smile was wide, like a kid waiting for his birthday present.

“I don’t know, I can’t remember. I was too busy wondering when he’d let me out to actually remember anything he said. But it went on for three hours. That was torture.” Baekhyun huffs loudly.

“You’re so lucky, Baekhyun hyung.” Sehun was clapping on Baekhyun’s arm, looking so jealous yet excited about this story.

Baekhyun was quick to scrunch his face and shake his head, stopping Sehun’s hand to hold it instead. “No Sehunnie, you’re the lucky one here. You get to see Mr. Loey all the time.”

“He scolds me on a daily basis,” Sehun replies dryly. 

“I’d do anything to be on your shoes.” Baekhyun hiccups. 

Sehun narrows his gaze. “He always threatens to fire me.” 

“You get to see him work, it must be a very attractive sight.” Baekhyun sighs dreamily. 

“He orders me to make copies, all the fucking time.” Sehun rolls his eyes. 

“You’re the luckiest.” Huge grin on Baekhyun’s face. 

“I want to quit my job.” Sehun whines like a baby. 

“You guys are crazy.” Jongdae points out once more, his palms landing on his forehead, grunting at his friends.

  
  


To say that Baekhyun has the worst hangover that following morning, is an understatement. Baekhyun feels like shit. 

After having a heated argument with Sehun about who, between the two of them, is the luckier guy in this lifetime, Baekhyun has no other recollection of what happened for the rest of that night. Waking up in his own bed that morning wearing his pajamas was a total mystery since Jongdae and Sehun were just as drunk as he was last night. But the bigger mystery was how he managed to get up and get ready for work. 

Here he is now, slumped in the counter of the café, with what he decides is the worst hangover of his life. He’s alone because his best friend Jongdae beat him to calling in sick and his boss demanded Baekhyun to report to work before he could even say “I can’t.” He’s just quietly hoping not many customers would come in for the rest of his shift. 

And it seems like the world is on Baekhyun’s side today. Besides the two students who came in early in the morning to study, only two patrons came by to get coffee to go. The café is pretty much empty. After taking ibuprofen, Baekhyun slumps on the counter to rest his head and hopefully steer away from an impending migraine.

Just as Baekhyun wants to sleep away this damn hangover, he doesn’t want to lose his job more than anything, so he tries hard to fight away the drowsiness. One of the students walks up to him asking for table napkins and he gives him a handful of it, without looking up. So much for customer service. Few minutes later, he hears the other guy asking about the Loey promo. He forgot to take the poster down. 

“That was yesterday Sir. It was a one-day promo only, sorry.” Baekhyun slowly mumbles and hopes the customer understood what he just said, because he does not want to repeat himself. 

After a few seconds of silence, the customer further asks, “I came by yesterday to avail it but...you closed up early?” 

Baekhyun is getting irritated but he stops himself from lashing out on a customer. He just nods and hums a yes to him, hoping it would be his last inquiry. Thankfully, he hears nothing thereafter. The hungover barista hears the door chime a few seconds later, indicating a new customer coming in. He waits for the new customer’s order but he hears nothing. He looks up, sight a little foggy from having slumped for so long, and scans the café. The two students are still in that one table and no sign of any new customer around. Baekhyun shrugs it off and goes back to his previous position.

Baekhyun has been working at Daei café for almost seven months now. When the owner of the chicken restaurant he used to work at filed for bankruptcy, he had no choice but to look for a new job because he needed to pay for his apartment rent and he has plans to study pastry arts. With only a couple more left to fill up his savings for school, he couldn’t afford to stop. His best friend Jongdae, like an angel sent from heaven, told him about an opening for a barista position in the café he was working at. It was perfect for Baekhyun because he could practice his baking skills and get paid for it. It was perfect for Jongdae because he can finally see his best friend everyday. 

Baekhyun’s life goal is to run his own café. It was his and his mother’s dream together. Baekhyun wanted to bake gorgeous cakes and sell them in slices, while his mother wanted to decorate the café with green plants and pink table sheets. They wanted it to look and feel cozy and warm, like drinking hot chocolate on a rainy day, or like how his mother would bake cookies whenever Baekhyun comes home sad or tired. Sadly, Baekhyun’s mother had leukemia when he was thirteen. With puffy eyes and tear stained cheeks, he promised his bed-ridden mother he would fulfill their dream in this lifetime. He assured her that one day, she would look down from heaven, and she’d be so happy and proud because that would be the day her pumpkin would be opening their dream café. Baekhyun still has a long way to go but he’s getting there, one step at a time. 

Jongdae was the one who told his boss, Kim Junmyeon, to give Baekhyun a chance to work at the café. After half-heartedly firing three employees who did poorly at that position, Junmyeon hoped Jongdae was right about his best friend. 

And right he is. 

Baekhyun was perfect for the job. His cakes were amazing and he was good with customers as well. The only problem with Baekhyun is, he’s so comfortable with Junmyeon that the latter sometimes feel treated more as Baekhyun’s friend than as his boss. He’s pulled harmless pranks on Junmyeon a few times now that Jongdae wonders how Baekhyun still hasn’t lost his job yet. Jongdae believes their boss is just too kind. Or he’s just too busy with his other businesses to waste his time disciplining the naughty barista. 

Jongdae witnessed how their boss fired 3 people before Baekhyun, but not after giving them time to look for another job and proper compensation. He was the kind of boss any employee would want to have. 

“Baekhyun, has anyone ever told you how beautiful and cute you are? I want to take care of you. I want to get to know you more. Please let me have this chance.” 

Chanyeol’s face is inches away from Baekhyun’s. The barista can feel his cheeks getting warm, that he knows he looks like a tomato right now. But this is Baekhyun’s chance at love. It’s finally happening. When he thought all his efforts were put to waste, the man of his dreams finally walks up to him to sweep him away. Like a prince in the darkest night. And Baekhyun, he wholeheartedly gives his heart to this man. This is it, his happiness. He slowly leans in, wanting to seal their lips in a kiss to make it official. Except Baekhyun suddenly feels a tug on his stomach. In a snap, he gets pulled away from Chanyeol. He turns his head to look at what is happening, but there is nothing. Nothing but darkness and void space. It’s like there is an invisible rope wrapped around his waist and something or someone is trying to separate him from the love of his life. Baekhyun is too shocked to even do anything.

Chanyeol is as shocked as he is. He starts to run, reaching out his hand for Baekhyun to grab but Baekhyun is being dragged so quickly. Every second, their distance doubles. He’s so far away now and Chanyeol’s legs are hurting from the run. With bated breath, he calls out for Baekhyun’s name.

“Baekhyun!”

“Baekhyun!”

“Byun Baekhyun!” 

He jolts awake at the booming voice of his employer, scrambling to stand up. It’s been twenty minutes since Baekhyun unknowingly fell asleep. The flustered barista presses down on his crumpled apron, trying to look attentive as if he wasn’t just found sleeping during his shift.

“Mr. Kim! You’re here!” Baekhyun gulps and follows his boss to his office to explain himself.

“Mr. Kim. I- I was just taking a quick nap I swear. Please don’t fire me.” Baekhyun pleads to his boss for the first time.

Junmyeon takes a seat behind his desk and looks at his wristwatch. “It’s four in the afternoon, Baekhyun. Why don’t you go finish your coffee and then head home to rest? I want you here early tomorrow.” The café owner softly addresses the panicking barista as he types away in his computer.

Baekhyun is confused. “Go home? But Mr. Kim, I have to close up the café.”

“It’s okay, I can manage. Besides, we don’t get many customers during this time.” Junmyeon looks up at his employee and makes a gesture to make him leave already.

After convincing himself that his boss is just being nice and would not give him demerits for sleeping during his shift, Baekhyun finally steps out of the office, feeling a little guilty but grateful as well. He walks back to the counter and finds a coffee cup with a sticky note on the side. Baekhyun furrows his brows and mumbles to himself, “My coffee?”

He picks up the drink. It’s still warm. Baekhyun then reads the words written on the sticky note. “You look like you need this.” The barista mouths the words slowly, tilting his head a little confused then turns around to look at his boss’s office door. “I have the kindest boss. I’ll be a better employee for you, Mr. Kim.” He promises softly, smiling as he drinks the coffee at hand.

Chanyeol steps into his studio that afternoon and gets the shock of his life when he notices his receptionist wearing a bathrobe over his boxer shorts and a low cut tank top at work. 

“What are you wearing Oh Sehun?” Chanyeol asks incredulously.

“That sounds like an intro for a phone sex porno, Hyung.” Sehun cackles, looking up at his boss.

“Did you just clock in?” Chanyeol is already nagging, checking his watch for the time. 

“I got here twenty minutes ago. Kyungsoo hyung already finished recording and left. Where have you been?” Sehun nonchalantly asks his employer.

“It’s 4 in the afternoon!” The director’s eyes were blown wide at his secretary’s display of his chest in their workplace. Sehun just shrugs. 

“Yah Oh Sehun. What are you trying to pull off this time?” Chanyeol is pretty sure he’s getting a headache any minute now. WIth a loud huff, he marches to his office, the half-naked secretary in tow.

“Hyung, I got up at 2PM. I was out drinking last night. And tonight I’ll be drinking again. Does that make me a drunkard now?” Sehun curiously asks, ignoring his employer’s questions.

“You’re drinking again? Why?” Chanyeol’s tone lowered a litte, taking a seat on his executive chair.

“Did you forget? Jongin is throwing a birthday party for you.” Sehun follows suit, taking the couch instead, his feet up the table.

“It’s not my party. I barely know Jongin’s guests. And how does that explain you wearing a bathrobe in my studio?” Chanyeol looks through papers to sign, hoping it would make him come off as busy. Maybe this could be a good excuse to skip the party.

“I’m coming with you to the party. Jongin and Kyungsoo hyung assigned me to escort you so you wouldn’t bail on us again, like you did last time when Jongin first came home from Paris.” Sehun finds a jar of gummy worms on the table and takes one to chew on.

“I had my reasons back then.” Chanyeol explains without looking up.

“You didn’t want to see Joy, I get it.” Sehun points out, a gummy worm dangling on the side of his lips. 

“T-that’s not it. I had to work!” Chanyeol was caught off guard, stuttering to defend himself.

“Yeah right. If you must know, Hyung, she wasn’t there at that party. Anyway, I have to shower first, I need to use your office bathroom. You’re coming to the party and that’s final.” Secretary Oh walks up towards the bathroom.

“You’re being annoying Oh Sehun.” The director shakes his head, deciding to just go back to work.  
“Would you want me to come to the party with you looking like this?” A chair cushion flies towards Sehun after his remark, making him cackle and run away to the bathroom to finally take a shower.

By the time Chanyeol and Sehun arrive at the bar where Jongin is throwing the party, the venue is already filled with people they don’t even know. 

On the way, Sehun already received a fifteen minute talk on how he takes too long to get ready and how the party would be over by the time they get there. Chanyeol was still trying to get his way out of it but Sehun was quick to act. In the middle of Chanyeol blabbering about Sehun’s routines in life, he dialed his favorite Hyung’s number and put him on speaker. Do Kyungsoo’s speaking voice is just as attractive as his singing voice and his face are. 

In their circle, Kyungsoo acts as the mother of the group. He’s the one who always calls out on them whenever they do something stupid. To sum it up, he nags and they listen to him because for the last 15 years of being together, Kyungsoo has always been right. Chanyeol learned to obey because he knows the singer only wants what’s best and right for them and well, Kyungsoo gives the most painful ear tugs. 

Chanyeol likes birthday parties when it’s intimate. When he was young, his mom and dad and his sister threw the most memorable parties for him. No big parties and not many people were invited. They just bake his birthday cake together and cook his favorite meals. He got the simplest gifts but he was still the happiest kid. 

The bar where the party is being held at is a famous spot for celebrities in Seoul. Jongin, since he acquired the Nation’s Model title, has made it easy for him to book the entire place. And of course, it wouldn’t be a Jongin party if everyone in the industry does not come to socialize. Chanyeol knows this much so he’s quite convinced it’s not a party for himself. He’s just glad he gets to spend some time with his busy best friends. 

“You finally made it!” Jongin practically dives to give his Hyung a big hug. 

“I did. It’s nice to see you again, big star.” Chanyeol reciprocates the hug and pats the model’s back. He looks around, as if looking for someone before pulling away from his best friend.

“You should thank me.” Sehun picks up a glass of champagne from the waiter’s tray and takes a seat next to Kyungsoo, leaning his head on the singer’s shoulder. 

“Thank you for doing your assignment, Oh Sehun.” Kyungsoo speaks softly, patting the secretary’s cheek lovingly. 

“You’re making it sound like I’m a terrible friend.” Chanyeol rolls his eyes and takes a seat.

“You’re not a terrible friend Chanyeol hyung, we’re just making sure you don’t become one if you ever miss a party again.” Jongin claps on the director’s shoulder before leaving their table to greet some friends from the fashion industry. Chanyeol grabs a bottle of beer and takes a swig. 

“You okay?” Kyungsoo softly asks the director, handing him a piece of napkin to wipe off the beer from his chin. Chanyeol thanks him for it and wipes it clean. 

“I’m okay. I emailed your manager the track listing I proposed for your album. If you need to change any-” Chanyeol was stopped by Kyungsoo’s hand on his wrist.

“I’m not here to talk about work, Chanyeol. You’re working all the time. You should take a rest.” The singer pats the director’s arm and it seems to have worked on Chanyeol, because he sighs and sits back on the couch.

“The last time you were like this was when Joy noona left for Paris. That was your lowest Hyung.” Sehun comments, popping a pistachio into his mouth. Hearing the name of his ex-girlfriend, Chanyeol went a little stiff, looking around the venue with his eyebrows furrowed.

“She’s not here Hyung, don’t worry. I’m not gonna ruin your birthday party.” Jongin comes back and reassures his friend. Chanyeol relaxes in his seat, downing his beer in one shot. 

“Sorry, I just don’t know what I’d do or say or act when we actually meet. You know how hard it was for me.” Chanyeol confesses to his friends, chewing on the inside of his cheek.

“You’re doing okay, Chanyeol-ah. If she ever appears before you, just keep walking.” Kyungsoo advises his friend, words tender and full of care.

“Aigoo, you’re ruining the night already. We should be celebrating!” Sehun chimes in, pulling out a bag from behind the couch and hands it to his dramatic boss.

“Happy birthday Chanyeol hyung!” Jongin wiggles in his seat, excited to see his best friend’s reaction when he opens the present. 

Kyungsoo flags the waiter to deliver the cake they prepared for Chanyeol. The trio cheerfully sang Happy Birthday, in the middle of a bar, and even got some attention from the crowd, singing along with them. Chanyeol blows the candle and opens his present, a Leica camera, then stands up to give his three best friends the biggest hugs. Chanyeol doesn’t like big parties, but this one, even though big, became intimate and memorable for Chanyeol, thanks to his four amazing friends. 

  
  


The thing with Oh Sehun is, he doesn’t know how to knock. And Chanyeol’s used to it by now, after agreeing to hire him as his receptionist and secretary while he still doesn’t know what he wants to do with his life. It was Kyungsoo’s idea. Being the youngest one in the group, the three hyungs fully support Sehun in finding what he wants to do most in his life. And while he’s doing that, Kyungsoo thinks it’s best for him to work for Chanyeol to keep a close eye on him. Sehun didn’t want to do it at first, only wanted to spend all his time playing video games. But when he received the nicest gifts last Christmas from his three best friends, while he couldn’t afford to buy any for them, he decided to accept the offer. Sehun is pretty good at being Chanyeol’s secretary. He complains a lot but he delivers excellent results. The director is grateful to have Sehun work for him, even though he’s quite a pain in the ass.

“Here’s your coffee for the day, Mr. Loey.” Sehun sing-songs as he places the coffee cup in the director’s table, turning it around to purposely show the note attached to it. 

Chanyeol looks at the beverage, raising his eyebrow at the teasing secretary. “I didn’t ask for coffee,” the director replied dryly.

Sehun shrugs, taking a seat on the couch, and opens the box he brought. “Yeah, but Baekhyun hyung said you didn’t come to the café this morning and you looked really tired. So he delivered it to you.” The secretary smiles at the pretty chocolate cake inside the box and gets his fork ready to cut a piece.

“Why do you have cake? Is that yours?” Chanyeol’s neck extends to see what kind of cake Sehun is holding.

“It’s mine. You can only have the coffee. The cake is mine. You can’t have it.” Sehun defends his cake and takes a big bite from it. 

“I didn’t say I wanted it.” Chanyeol rolls his eyes and goes back to working.

While Sehun enjoys the chocolate cake, he decides it’s the best time of the day to tease his best friend about the donor of his coffee. “Why don’t you just give the man a chance, Hyung?” He says with a mouth full of the sweet ganache.

“A kid.” Chanyeol sternly replies.

Sehun is confused. “What?”

“A kid. He’s a kid. There are no chances to give.” Chanyeol answers with finality.

“But Hyung, do you not remember what Kyungsoo hyung and Jongin told you last night. You need to divert your attention to other things, not just work. Or else you wouldn’t move on from Joy noona. And you wouldn’t move on with your life.” Sehun whines like a baby, but Chanyeol knows he has a point. But he wouldn’t let his secretary know about it.

“And besides, he’s not that young. Only two years younger than you.” Sehun adds, wiggling in his seat because of the sweet cake. Chanyeol didn’t think that barista was almost his age. He looks a lot younger.

“I don’t have time to date, Sehun. You’re my secretary, you must know how busy I am.” Chanyeol retorts.

“Yes I do know how busy you are, I’m your secretary. But I’m also your best friend that’s why I’m trying to help you realize that you can take a rest. Go out. Have fun. Meet people.” Sehun sounds like a man in his forties with the words that come out of his mouth.

“But why are you pushing me to date that barista?” Chanyeol asks, crossing his arms against his chest. 

“Because he’s nice, and he cares about you.” Sehun answers, as a matter of factly.

“Even though you’re nothing but mean to him.” The receptionist mumbles to himself.

“What did you say? I didn’t’ get that last bit you said.” The director furrows his brows at the younger man.

Sehun sighs loudly, closing his box of cake and stands up to head out of the office, stopping by the door to leave some words to pull some sense into Chanyeol’s head. “Nothing Hyung. I’m just saying, if you really want to be truly happy, you need to do something to find that happiness yourself. And you should start somewhere, even if it’s going on a date with some “kid”, as you describe him.” Sehun marches out of the office after his little speech.

Chanyeol grunts, leaning back on his office chair. He gets annoyed whenever Sehun speaks the truth. This happy-go-lucky guy shouldn’t be allowed to give life advice, it makes Chanyeol look less mature. The director turns his chair around to look down at the cafe in front. From the second floor of the studio, he can easily see what happens outside. 

It’s been a year since he got his heart broken. Ever since Joy decided it’s better for them to break up than stay in a long-distance relationship, Chanyeol has closed his doors to everyone. For two years in college, they dated, and Chanyeol was the happiest. However, they had chosen different pathways in life. And to walk on those pathways, they have to let go of each other’s hands. Joy was the first one to let go. It was too painful to Chanyeol so he decided he doesn’t want to go through that kind of pain anymore. So he pushes the idea of dating in the back of his head and focuses on growing his skills on music production. He has no time for love, even if it’s already knocking on his door. 

And as if the universe knew what goes on in his head, the barista steps out of the cafe. Baekhyun’s strawberry hair is glistening under the bright sun. It looks like he’s changing the writings on the cafe board. The barista is biting down on his lower lip while he writes on it, fully concentrated on his work. Chanyeol notices the boy smiling with pursed lips, and it seems like he’s giggling. He must be drawing something again, Chanyeol suspects, the doodled notes on his coffee in mind. Chanyeol finds it amusing. But then Baekhyun looked up at him and he almost had a heart attack, almost falling off his chair trying to back away from the window. Chanyeol assesses this situation and realizes how silly he’s acting. The windows are tinted. Nothing from the outside can see what is inside the office. Baekhyun did not see him.

When the director steps back closer to the window, the barista is gone. He turns to look at the coffee sitting on his desk and stares at the doodle, a puppy sleeping. He sighs loudly and rakes his hair back, picking up the cup to drink the beverage.

  
  


“You’re going home early?” Sehun asks when he sees his boss marching out of the studio.

“Yeah, I still have some packing to finish,” Chanyeol answers, fixing his bag up his shoulder.

“Oh right, you’re moving into your new apartment tomorrow,” Sehun recalls.

Chanyeol nods. “Mm. I still have a lot to do, and my family’s coming over this Sunday to check on my place. You know how my mom hates messy places.” Sehun nods at that remark.

“And when do you plan to invite us over, hyung?” Sehun asks with a hint of aegyo.

“Do we have to do that?” The director teases, scrunching his face.

“Of course we do! Jongin is flying back to Paris next weekend. And you and Kyungsoo hyung will be busy with the album. You guys are gonna leave me sad and alone again.” Chanyeol’s secretary is pouting now. No matter how much Sehun annoys the hell out of him, he considers him a precious friend who always keeps the group together. Chanyeol thanks the heavens for giving him a friend so loyal.

“Yeah okay, we can do that. But let me get the place neat at least.” Chanyeol walks up to his best friend and ruffles the younger’s hair. Sehun’s face brightens up, nodding like a child would when his mommy promises a visit to the amusement park.

Chanyeol drops into his bed after a long morning of cleaning up and entertaining his family in his new apartment. Good thing they brought home cooked meals and stacked up on his kimchi supply, Chanyeol thinks his meals are covered for the rest of the week. 

The next thing he knows, it’s late afternoon. He must have been so tired, he didn’t even realize he fell asleep. Chanyeol stretches his limbs and looks out the window. It’s a nice day. Not too late for a jog. 

After dressing up, he heads out to the nearest park and starts his routine exercise. For about forty minutes, Chanyeol ran around the whole extent of the park, 7 rounds to be exact. 

When Chanyeol feels beaten, he takes a rest in one of the benches and lets his breathing even out. He starts doing some cooling down stretches while seated. 

Chanyeol immediately likes this park. It’s situated beside the Han River, a long esplanade by the river bank and goes around where a playground, a tennis court and a basketball court can be found. Chanyeol knows he’s gonna come here often to exercise and get fresh air. 

Just then, he hears giggles from his right. He turns his head and finds an old lady sitting on the bench beside his. They lock eyes and Chanyeol bows politely at her. 

“Every Sunday I see him. Such a tiny man. But really pretty. I remember my son in him. It’s so cute whenever he gets dragged by those big dogs he walks.” Chanyeol listens to the story of the old lady, her words were slow, but her tone is still so bright. Chanyeol thinks she’s lived her life doing what she loves most. 

When the old lady ends her story, she continues to giggle. Curious to what she is talking about, he turns his head to scan the park. There he is, the young man fitting the old lady’s descriptions. He’s walking five dogs in total, two of which are big Retrievers, one is a Pug and two are Poodles. 

Chanyeol furrows his brows because that boy looks quite familiar. When the herd of dogs came near their benches, he confirms that the man is indeed who he thought it was. The barista that works at the cafe across from his studio. 

“Hey!” Chanyeol calls out to him. He does not know why he just did that but the barista already saw him, so there’s no backing out. He stands up from the bench and takes long strides to catch up from the walking dogs. 

“Hey.” Chanyeol repeats once he’s standing beside the barista, who seems to be in shock?

“Are you okay?” Chanyeol waves his hand in front of him, waking him up from a trance. 

“Oh hi. Mr. Loey. Y-you jog here?” Baekhyun bows to the director. 

“It’s actually my first time. I just moved in nearby. Are these your dogs?” Chanyeol points to the pets on their leashes. 

“Oh um. No. I just walk them here every Sunday.” Before Baekhyun could explain his story, he suddenly gets dragged away when the dogs decide it’s the perfect time to race back to the shelter.” Baekhyun turns to shout at Mr. Loey to bid him goodbye. 

“Sorry, Mr. Loey. I have to go!”

Chanyeol waves at the running boy, snickering at the hilarious scene. The old lady was right. He is cute.

One week later, Chanyeol decides to come to the park the same time he did last week. 

Chanyeol would not admit it was a decision he thought so much about though. He prefers the words “forced to go out of boredom”. Yep, that’s it. It’s not because he’s looking for someone and wants to spend time with that certain someone. That’s absurd. 

This time though, Chanyeol didn’t go out to jog. He’s just wearing his comfy clothes, a hoodie and shorts that matches the color of his hoodie and of course his cap, all black. He walks leisurely to the bench where he sat last time and then begins to look around. 

There’s a family nearby, having their picnic with their little toddler. They seem to be having fun. Not too far along, he sees some teenagers giggling over what seems to be a video of their favorite Korean idol. 

And then he spots him. It’s not like he was looking for him. No he isn’t. Baekhyun is just too easy to notice because he has a lot of dogs with him. 

“Hey, Baekhyun-ssi.” Chanyeol greets the younger man. Baekhyun looks like he’s seen a ghost with the way he just froze at the sight of the director. 

“Are you okay?” Chanyeol waves his hand in front and it startles the barista. 

“Y-yes. Um. Sorry about that. And sorry about last time, Mr. Loey.” The younger blinks up at him before he averts his gaze back to his dogs. 

“That’s okay. The dogs are the bosses.” Chanyeol points at them, reaching to pet one of the poodles close to him. 

“Yeah. They really are.” Baekhyun chuckles softly, looking away. 

“So you said they’re not yours? Whose are they?” Chanyeol further asks, hands slipping into his pockets. 

“Oh they’re dogs from the shelter nearby. These got rescued when they were still puppies. We take care of them until they’re healthy enough to be adopted. These are the big ones that are still waiting for adoption.” Baekhyun explains to Mr. Loey, as if they’ve known each other for a long time. What is happening? He’s actually having a conversation with the man of his dreams. He’s not malfunctioning like those times he tried to have a proper conversation with him at the cafe? So weird.

“You work there too?” Chanyeol looks at him with a confused face. 

“I just volunteer. Every Sunday.” Baekhyun purses his lips and nods. 

“Can I join you?” Chanyeol asks, but Baekhyun gives him an incredulous look, so he had to reiterate. “Walking the dogs I mean?” 

“Oh. Right! Yes of course.” Mr. Loey wants to walk with him. This must be a daydream. It definitely is. 

  
  


“Call me Chanyeol.” Mr. Loey speaks up a few minutes into the walk.

“Huh?” Baekhyun looks up at the director, a little confused.

The taller turns his head to look at the barista, amused by the puzzled reaction he’s getting. “Chanyeol. It’s my name. Park Chanyeol. You should call me that.” He nods, urging the other man to say it.

Chanyeol notices the shorter’s cheeks turning a different shade. There’s something about the way the sunset’s light hits the boy’s skin and the way it mixes with the faint pink of his cheeks creating an alluring blend of beauty. It stirs something inside of Chanyeol. He doesn’t know what it is, doesn’t even know how to describe it, but he’s positive he’s never felt it before. Chanyeol is mesmerized, and strangely, he likes it.

“Are you okay, Baekhyun-ssi?” Chanyeol observes the younger fiddling on the leashes in his hand, looking ahead nervously, so the director decides to ask him softly, leaning closer to see more of the barista’s face. 

Baekhyun feels like throwing up. Mr. Loey, in his softest voice and in his lowest tone, asks him if he’s okay. Clearly he’s not. Not when you have such a gorgeous man leaning into your face so close. Baekhyun swears, he can smell the director’s perfume at this proximity, and he smells so good, he thinks he’s gonna faint soon.

This is not even as close as how Baekhyun felt in his Loey daydreams before. Baekhyun had countless daydreams and dreams while he was asleep, all of which involved him and Mr. Loey, falling in love and more. Baekhyun feels happy whenever he wakes up from them, like taking an energy pill to get him through any day. 

However, Baekhyun forgot to include in his daydreams the thought of them actually happening in real life. He hasn’t prepared for the real thing, and now that it’s happening, Baekhyun is short-circuiting. And he’s doing a terrible job at concealing his emotions. He can feel his cheeks burning up, his heartbeat going haywire and his lungs forgetting how to function. 

And maybe Mr. Loey has seen through him. That little smirk he did just before leaning away only meant that he read Baekhyun’s mind. Baekhyun feels like he’s in trouble for not controlling his actions well, but for now he’s safe. The barista lets out the breath he’s been holding, looking away to calm himself down. He tries to distract himself from what just happened, focusing on the dogs instead and untangling their leashes as they continue to walk the esplanade. 

“So? Will you call me Chanyeol from now on, Baekhyun-ssi?” Chanyeol asks again, from a safe distance now, so Baekhyun’s brain begins to actually work. 

The smaller purses his lips, as if thinking very hard of what to answer, oblivious to the fact that the director is unconsciously staring at him. “But you’re older than me, and a regular customer at the cafe. I feel like it’s rude of me to call you by your first name.” Baekhyun frowns, a little pout forming on the boy’s lips, one that Chanyeol did not miss to see. 

“It’s not rude because I’m the one asking you to do it. And besides, we’re friends now, aren’t we?” The director states as a matter of factly, reaching to take two of the leashes from Baekhyun’s hand, careful not to touch the barista’s skin. He kinda has an idea of the effect he has on the younger man. 

“May I?” He politely asks, and Baekhyun nods blankly, handing him the two leashes. The smaller follows the line and sees that Chanyeol unconsciously took the two biggest dogs from the pack, both adult golden retrievers. 

“You got the twins.” Baekhyun points out to the older. 

“Oh I did. What are their names?” Chanyeol holds on to the two leashes, one on each hand. 

“That one’s Dwaeco and the other one’s Jini.” Baekhyun almost giggles, sharing the names of the twins always make him crack up. 

“The owner is a Harry Potter fan?” Chanyeol asks and Baekhyun nods. 

“But Draco Malfoy and Ginny Weasley aren’t twins. They’re not even related. The owner’s favorite characters, perhaps?” Chanyeol is getting confused and Baekhyun is getting entertained. 

“These two, since they got rescued as puppies, had the biggest appetite among all the puppies in the shelter. They always run after the owner, barking for food. Can you imagine the tiny pups and their cute tiny barks?” Baekhyun is giggling. Like full on giggling. He does this whenever he tells stories about puppies and basically anything he finds cute. 

He instantly regrets the moment he looks up at the director and finds him staring at him, and grinning too. His smile is absolutely captivating, that Baekhyun has to whip his head back to face front, before he could fall off the edge and lose himself in the process. The strawberry head clears his throat and continues his story. 

“Anyway, the owner of the shelter, Wendy-ssi, is a huge Harry Potter fan, and she had this sudden idea of naming the new puppies that came in after the characters of the book series. And since these two had the biggest appetite…” Baekhyun pauses, hoping the director would realize the meaning behind the dogs’ names on his own. And he did. 

“Dwae-ji*! Dwae-co and Ji-ni! That’s genius!” Chanyeol’s booming laugh was so loud, Baekhyun was shocked but didn’t mind. It’s the first time he hears the stoic director laugh so loudly, and Baekhyun decides this is his favorite Loey look. 

  
  


The next time they see each other is in the cafe. It’s two in the afternoon and the shop is not crowded. Jongdae is busy doing inventory at the kitchen while Baekhyun is seated on one of the tables, facing the door where the afternoon sunlight seeps into the coffee shop. He’s folding napkins neatly and getting creative with the table ornaments. He’s smiling, obviously having fun in his element. Since Christmas is nearing, he’s decorating the cafe with snowflakes, glitters in silver and white with a touch of yellow to heighten the cheery mood. 

Ever since Baekhyun suggested and helped with the decorations for the summer theme of the cafe which raked positive reviews from customers and netizens, Junmyeon has assigned him in-charge with all the decorations to follow. Baekhyun has the natural talent in making a room brighten up in an instant. 

It turns out he doesn’t only do it to rooms. 

“Since you don’t want to call me by my name, I think it’s only fair for me to do the same.” Chanyeol just appeared before Baekhyun, taking the seat across him, with that oh so lovely smile of his. A plaid shirt looks good on him, Baekhyun never thought about it before. 

Baekhyun’s eyes widened, his heart beating fast in an instant. This is the first time Mr. Loey actually talked to him in the cafe other than those times he took his orders behind the counter. 

“Mr. Loey! You’re here. Um… do you want coffee?” Baekhyun is panicking. He did not expect the director to be at the cafe at this hour. Let alone sit with him and strike up a conversation. 

Oh Baekhyun, what else would people do in a coffee shop?

By instinct, the barista stands up attentively. He pulls out the notepad and pen inside his apron pocket and waits for the director’s orders. 

Seeing the barista getting anxious from his sudden visit, Chanyeol kinda feels bad for causing this panic so he decides to order. 

“Okay. Uh.. I'll have the usual.” Chanyeol nods and smiles tight lipped at the barista. 

“The usual? What do you mean?” Of course Baekhyun knows what the director means. But Chanyeol doesn’t know that he knows, so Baekhyun had to play an act. 

“My usual, the one I order every morning? Do you not remember?” Chanyeol’s tone is teasing, clearly he’s enjoying this. 

“Uh...I take hundreds of orders a day, Mr. Loey. I’m afraid you have to remind me what your usual order is.” Baekhyun is fiddling with the edge of his notepad, one foot tapping on the floor out of nervousness.

The director nods, his lower lip protruding to a pout. For Baekhyun, this is torture.

“Very well then. I’ll have a grande size Iced Caramel Macchiato, three shots, with a pump of chocolate.” Chanyeol grins up at the barista and waits for him to acknowledge. 

Baekhyun raises his notepad, almost too close to his face and begins to write down the order. His brows furrowed as he re-reads what he just wrote. 

“But it’s Iced Americano. Not Caramel Macchiato. Two shots not three.” Baekhyun is talking too fast. 

“And you always ask for a pump of toffee nut, not cho-“ When he looked down at his customer with confusion all over his face, that’s when he realized he just messed up his act. 

Baekhyun gasps, quickly covering his mouth with the notepad, his face now as red as a tomato. Mr. Loey knew! And is he giggling at him? Oh how embarrassing! 

Baekhyun did what is best to do in situations like this: run. And so he did. He runs to the kitchen and promises not to come out forever.

Except Junmyeon arrives at the worst time, sees Mr. Loey unattended and fetches Baekhyun in the kitchen. 

“Yah, Byun Baekhyun. What are you doing here? Why do you always keep that customer waiting? Go out there and make that man’s drink or else you’re taking all of Jongdae’s cleaning tasks for a week.” Junmyeon says with authority, ready to walk to his office.

Baekhyun claps on his throbbing chest, trying to calm his heart. He processes what his boss just told him, just to make sure he did not miss anything he said. 

“Wait...I always keep him waiting? But this is the first time-“ Baekhyun’s thought is cut off by his boss who comes out of his office again. 

“Oh, I almost forgot. Make that two cups of his regular coffee. And a slice of strawberry shortcake. He asked me to tell you. He said you ran away before he could finish his orders, aigoo.” Junmyeon returns to his office after relaying the director's orders. 

Jongdae’s head popped out from the storage room like a weasel lurking for food. “I heard my name. What’s that about?”

Baekhyun sighs and shakes his head. “Nothing. Mr. Kim said he’s giving you a raise.” Baekhyun says, grabbing something before he heads back to the bar to make the director’s drink. 

When Baekhyun gathers enough courage to come out from the kitchen, Chanyeol is still there where he left him. He seems busy, tapping on his phone while his other hand plays with the silver ribbon the barista was using for the cafe decor. Baekhyun tiptoes his way to the espresso machine and begins to make the two drinks Mr. Loey just ordered. By luck, the director’s phone rings. Chanyeol takes the call, business matters as usual. Just the perfect distraction Baekhyun needs so he could do his job properly. 

In no time, the drinks are ready. Baekhyun neatly arranges the cups into a coffee carrier and the cake into a cute little box. He composes himself, breathes deeply and gets ready to execute the plan. He’s going to set down the coffee and cake on the table while Mr. Loey is still busy with his phone call. Then he’ll retreat to base and just wait for him to leave the cafe. That’s the plan, the Save Baekhyunee’s Heart Mission. 

With a deep breath, Baekhyun takes long careful strides, hoping not to catch the director’s attention. He’s into the conversation so Baekhyun believes he has a chance to do this well. Except Chanyeol ends the call the moment he puts down the coffee. Baekhyun freezes. 

“Oh hi. You’re back. Are you okay? Why do you have a face mask on?” Chanyeol asks the barista, his gaze moving down to the coffee cups.

“You got me the wrong order.” Mr. Loey says, his bright face morphing into disappointment. 

“What? But… I’m sure of it. I remembered your drink, Mr. Loey.” Baekhyun is stunned and confused. 

Chanyeol shakes his head. “No it’s the wrong order. My coffee always comes with personalized notes right here in the middle. These don’t have notes on them.” He slides the coffee back to Baekhyun’s side. 

He noticed the notes. Mr. Loey noticed the notes. Baekhyun feels like he’s on cloud nine. 

“Oh. Alright. I’m sorry.” Baekhyun can feel his cheeks burning up again. He’s just glad he’s wearing the face mask. Protection from Mr. Loey’s charm is the original purpose, but in this case, something to hide his blushing face. 

“Oh, and I’m drinking the coffee here. Thank you Baekhyunee.” Chanyeol adds on his way back to the bar. 

Abort mission!

On Baekhyun’s return, two notes are stuck on the coffee cups, just like what the director asked for. Chanyeol studies them and chuckles softly at the puppy doodles Baekhyun drew for him. One is crying and the other one is blushing. 

“Well? What are you standing there for? Have a seat.” Just a friendly invitation, nothing to worry about Baekhyun. 

“Huh...what?” Baekhyun asks. 

“Did you want me to stay awake for more than 24 hours, Baekhyunee? I cannot finish two cups by myself.” Chanyeol explains, placing one coffee, the one with the crying puppy doodle, across him, where Baekhyun was sitting awhile ago. 

“I thought you bought it for Sehun?” Baekhyun is really confused, he just wants answers. Answers to why Mr. Loey is asking him to have coffee and why he’s calling him Baekhyunee. It’s too cute, Baekhyun cannot breathe properly.

Shaking his head, Chanyeol urges the younger to take the seat. Baekhyun tells himself, he’s just being polite and that's why he’s accepting the invitation. The truth is, he just couldn’t resist that smile. 

The director takes a sip and smiles. “This is it. My regular.”

Baekhyun sighs dreamily, instantly lost in the taller’s smile. This is him. My prince. He thought to himself. 

“Come again?” Chanyeol speaks. 

“What?” Did he say it out loud? Fuck.

“You said something. I didn’t quite get it.” Chanyeol repeats. 

“Oh I didn’t say anything.” Baekhyun apologizes to Mr. Loey in his head for lying to his face. 

“Must be my imagination.” The director chuckles and shrugs, continuing to sip on his coffee. He really does love that blend. 

“Go ahead, Baekhyunee. Drink your coffee.” 

“Baekhyunee?” The barista asks.

“Yup. Baekhyunee. That’s the name I’m calling you from now on, since you don’t want to call me Chanyeol.” The director slides the plate of cake towards Baekhyun’s side as well, gesturing him to eat and drink.

Baekhyun needs to stop staring into Mr. Loey’s eyes because they are hypnotising. Whatever Chanyeol says, he obeys. With trembling hands, he pulls down his face mask and takes a tiny sip of the drink. 

Bleh. He forgot how this drink tastes so bitter. When Baekhyun learned this blend is the director’s favorite, he made one for himself to try it. He did not like it at all. It was too bitter for his taste. 

While having an internal conflict with the taste of the bitter coffee and trying not to puke in front of the man of his dreams, something happens and Baekhyun’s time stops.

Chanyeol, with his oh so manly hand, reached for Baekhyun’s nose and removed something from it. It was like a scene from a movie, a scene from one of Baekhyun’s daydreams, something that Baekhyun never ever thought of happening in real life. Time stopped and everything was a blur around them. Baekhyun zeroes out all the noise and his heartbeat is the only thing he could hear, so strong and loud, wanting to escape and declare his unwavering affection for this man.

In all of Baekhyun’s past daydreams about Mr. Loey, this is the part where he wakes up. Either by Jongdae’s yelling or by a customer waving their hands in front of him to see if Baekhyun is still awake. Baekhyun waits but there is no sign of Jongdae whining nor there is a customer repeatedly calling out his attention. 

This is real shit. A true to life kind of movie. And Baekhyun is the lead. 

“T-there’s glitter on your nose.” Chanyeol softly speaks and if Baekhyun is paying attention to details, he would notice the tinge of pink blossoming the director’s cheeks. 

  
  


From then on, Chanyeol becomes a regular at the cafe. He stays longer now, when he doesn’t have to be around his recording equipments. Sometimes, he asks people to meet in the cafe and have their discussions there. And when he doesn’t have anyone to talk to, he orders an extra coffee and invites Baekhyun to sit with him. Baekhyun brings a free slice of cake every time. 

“Okay so tell me… why did you do that?” Chanyeol suddenly asks the barista one afternoon. Baekhyun is enjoying his strawberry milkshake and looks at the director, a little confused. 

“What did I do?” Baekhyun asks back. 

“You purposely messed up my drink.” The director raises a brow, waiting for the barista’s answer. 

“What? I did not mess up your drink on purpose, what are you talking about Mr. Loey?” Baekhyun frowns because he’s sure he got the drink right. 

“Not this one. From before. I ordered the same drink like this one, but you gave me a different one. Why?” Chanyeol crosses his legs, narrowing his eyes at the barista. 

Baekhyun reddens at the memory of doing the act. He’s guilty of that crime. And he wants the ground to just swallow him whole. 

“I thought you would not notice.” Baekhyun’s voice is so small. 

“I noticed right away. Was it a prank? Was I supposed to complain you got me the wrong drink and then you’d come around to show me where you hid the camera?” Chanyeol has the thinking face on. 

Baekhyun stares down at his straw and answers in his mind. “No. You were supposed to complain so I could apologize and we could have a proper conversation and be friends and then fall in love. That was the plan.”

He looks up and grins playfully at the director. “Yes. That’s it. You caught me. Hehe.”

“Really? That’s it? Oh wow.” Chanyeol shakes his head, chuckling. He could not believe he averted that prank. 

“Okay, but do you know I asked for a different order one time, you gave me the usual?” Chanyeol sips on his drink and nods at the barista. 

Baekhyun gasps at this revelation. “Why did you do that?” 

“I wanted to see if you really listen to my orders. Clearly, you don’t.” Chanyeol is laughing loudly. 

Baekhyun scrunches his face and pouts, crossing his arms against his chest. “Yah! You’re mean!” 

  
  


Chanyeol becomes a regular at Baekhyun’s Sunday walks with the dogs as well. One afternoon, he volunteers to hold the leashes so Baekhyun would enjoy walking around the park. Chanyeol thinks it’s quite an easy task. But when the dogs suddenly sprint to chase after another dog around the park, Chanyeol gets dragged. He shouts for help while Baekhyun is busy taking photos and videos of that moment. 

The director collapses on the grass after that long run, vowing not to do that again. 

Baekhyun is giggling as he sits beside the director, using his cap to fan the exhausted director. “You worked hard, Mr. Loey. Are you taking over from now on?” 

Chanyeol raises his arms and makes a cross with it. “No. Never again. I’m not fit for that task.”

Baekhyun chuckles while watching the director close his eyes and rest his body. The orange shade of the sunset casts a beautiful tone to Chanyeol’s face. It looks as if he glistens because of the tiny beads of sweat along his forehead. 

Baekhyun does not know what got into him when his hand moves on its own to run slowly against the director’s damp forehead. His slender fingers slide easily up the director’s pushed back hair. Surprisingly, the director does not move or complain to the sudden gesture. But after a few strokes, Chanyeol’s eyes open and they lock eyes. Baekhyun realizes what he’s doing and he quickly pulls his hand away, muttering a small “sorry” before he stands up to get the dogs home. 

After that awkward moment, Baekhyun promises himself never to lose control in front of the director again. Him and Chanyeol are friends now, and the last thing Baekhyun wants is to ruin that just because he does something to make the air awkward. He takes caution whenever Chanyeol gets close to him and is always the first to look away whenever they stare at each other’s eyes. 

“What do you need, chef?” Chanyeol stands straight in the cafe’s kitchen, waiting for orders from the barista, but this time, the baker. 

Baekhyun giggles at the sight of the director wearing an apron in his kitchen. Baekhyun invited Chanyeol to taste test a new cake recipe he’s trying, before he could make a sample for Mr. Kim to approve. Chanyeol was more than willing to do it, and seeing how excited he is, Baekhyun thought it’s a better idea to invite the director to bake as well. Chanyeol gladly accepts the invitation, so here they are. 

Baekhyun starts off by teaching Chanyeol the basics of baking. From the tools and equipment they’d be using to the kinds of tips to make the perfect icing designs. Chanyeol looks the most confused when Baekhyun shows him the different types of flour available. 

  
“Why do you need so many flours? Don’t they all taste the same when they cook?” 

Baekhyun shakes his head. He points at each type and explains to Chanyeol the way he would understand. “Each type of flour is crucial to the kind of bread or cake you’re making. The density and elasticity of your dough usually depends on the kind of flour you use. And it’s important that you know who’s eating the pastry. For example, macarons are made with almond flour, but if you’re allergic to nuts, you cannot eat them unless the baker uses a different kind of flour.”

Chanyeol listens to the baker attentively. For some reason, the director sees Baekhyun in a different light. This is the first time he sees Baekhyun truly confident about what he’s saying, without having to shy away from him, and well… Chanyeol thinks it’s sexy. “Okay I think I get what you mean. What’s next?”

“What’s next is I’m going to bake and you’re going to just do everything that I do.” Baekhyun grins. 

“Okay. That’s easy.” Chanyeol claps and gets ready to do some baking. 

Baekhyun stops the director. “But here’s the catch. I won’t be giving you any instructions, I’m not even gonna speak. You just have to focus on my actions and do exactly what I’m doing.” 

“Like a challenge?” Chanyeol asks. 

“Hmm...yeah, like a challenge.”

The director narrows his gaze on the baker and crosses his arms against his chest. 

“Okay. But how do we know I pass?” 

“I’m gonna test your cake. Don’t worry, I won’t be judging the process, just the cake. If it tastes and looks decent, then you’d pass.” 

“What’s gonna happen if I pass? What’s my reward?” Chanyeol’s gaze on Baekhyun is so firm, that Baekhyun could feel his knees weaken and had to look away. 

“Um… I don’t know, free coffee for a whole week?” Baekhyun suggests. 

Chanyeol shakes his head. “Nu-uh. How about you come over to my place for dinner? I make a really good steak. A steak for a cake?”

Baekhyun gapes at the director’s words. Just the thought of coming to Mr. Loey’s apartment already makes him dizzy. Now he’s even cooking for him. Baekhyun wonders if he deserves all this luck with his crush. 

“So? Is that a yes?” Chanyeol is hopeful. 

“Well, okay. But don’t get your hopes up. Baking is not that easy.” 

“Oh please. I’m a fast learner.” Chanyeol retorts. 

Baekhyun perceives that Chanyeol really is a fast learner. Even without instructions, he’s good at following what he does. Baekhyun thinks he’s in trouble. 

While measuring the dry ingredients, Chanyeol looks at the baker’s movements intently. He makes sure everything is perfect. But when he looks at Baekhyun and notices the nervous face he’s making right now, Chanyeol has to do something to break the tension. 

“Hey you have some flour in your face.” Chanyeol says softly.

There’s nothing on Baekhyun’s face. Chanyeol leans in really close and Baekhyun freezes at the sudden proximity. The director points at his cheek and purposely smudges his flour covered hand on it. Baekhyun gasps the same time the director cackles. Chanyeol steps away just in case he gets attacked and sees the streak of flour on the baker’s cheek. 

Baekhyun is fuming, the cute kind, like a baby lion trying to fight his baby lion friends. 

“Oh you did not just do that.” Baekhyun’s gaze is menacing, and it looks like he just raised the red flag. It’s war. 

Baekhyun dips his hand in the flour and runs after the director, who is now laughing so hard and trying to save his life from the impending doom of Baekhyun’s revenge. 

After running two rounds in the kitchen, Baekhyun grabs the director and smudges the flour across his face. Baekhyun is proud he got his revenge, even bursting out laughing seeing half of Chanyeol’s face is white. But the director is not done yet. 

This time it’s Baekhyun who’s running and Chanyeol is just throwing out flour all over the place. He manages to cage Baekhyun against the wall. And oh it’s too close that Baekhyun just felt his soul leave his body. Chanyeol took the opportunity to make the flour rain on Baekhyun’s head, he’s having so much fun. 

When he sees the look on the baker’s face, Chanyeol freezes. And like a spell is casted on him, he couldn’t look away. His gaze moves down Baekhyun’s white nose, down to that pretty mole on the side of Baekhyun’s lips. When did it look this luscious?

Time ticks and the two are lost in between. Baekhyun finds it harder to breathe because the director is closing in on him. Mr. Loey is going to kiss him. 

Baekhyun closes his eyes, waiting for lips to press against his own. But time is ticking, and suddenly the kitchen timer goes off. In a flash, both bodies scramble their ways back to their places in the kitchen counter, both red in the faces up to their ears. 

Chanyeol clears his throat. “Okay, so um...what’s next chef?”

“Yeah. Um. Right.” Baekhyun leads the director by mixing the dry ingredients into the wet until it’s fully incorporated. After pouring the batter into the pan, he waits for Chanyeol to finish so they can put them into the oven. 

Strangely, the two did not stay awkward the whole time. While the cakes are baking, Baekhyun starts to prepare the jam and the whipping cream. Chanyeol follows what the baker is doing, throwing out little complaints about how it’s getting complicated, earning a chuckle from the baker. 

Baekhyun’s normal pace is much faster when it’s just him in the kitchen. He can easily finish three different cakes in one hour and he wouldn’t bust a sweat. But this time is different. He’s baking with Mr. Loey. Baekhyun kinda wants the director to succeed in baking his first cake. For the experience of course, not the dinner. 

But the heavens have other plans for Baekhyun tonight. When Baekhyun finishes the jam, he takes a teaspoon of it and blows on it until it cools down. He brings the spoon in his mouth to taste. Baekhyun smiles brightly, knowing he nailed that strawberry jam and shows it off to Chanyeol. 

Except Chanyeol is in a trance again. And before Baekhyun could even speak, Mr. Loey is already leaning in and a pair of lips are pressing against his. It takes two seconds for Baekhyun to process what is happening and then next thing, he’s kissing back. 

Baekhyun feels the director smile against his lips, as he gets pulled by his waist to deepen their kiss. The baker is thankful Chanyeol held him because his knees started to wobble and he couldn’t think straight. 

Chanyeol’s lips are just like how Baekhyun imagined them to be. So full and so soft. And they feel so perfect against Baekhyun’s. He can smell Chanyeol’s scent, that woody musk he always gets a whiff of whenever Chanyeol buys his coffee in the morning. It’s so intoxicating, Baekhyun is left in a daze.

When Chanyeol breaks the kiss, both of them are heaving as if they ran a marathon. They both smile shyly, Chanyeol taking the initiative to hold Baekhyun’s hands on their sides and tilting his head to see Baekhyun’s face better. 

“Do you like me, Baekhyun?” He whispers with his low tone and Baekhyun shivers. He looks up at the director until they’re inches apart. Baekhyun’s face is so red and he can feel his heart drumming against his ribcage. 

Baekhyun suddenly feels brave and he answers, “I think you already know the answer to that, Mr. Loey.”

Chanyeol chuckles, bringing his hand to cup Baekhyun’s face. “I do. I just want to hear it from you?”

Baekhyun takes a deep breath and closes his eyes tightly. “I do. I like you. I really do. I’m going crazy-”

Baekhyun’s outpouring of confessions is cut off by Chanyeol’s lips back on him. They kiss harder than the first time, Baekhyun bravely wrapping his arms around Chanyeol’s back and he has to tip toe just to deepen the kiss some more. 

They kiss for a few minutes until they’re out of breath. Chanyeol smiles against Baekhyun’s cheek and kisses him up, stopping to whisper to Baekhyun’s ear. “Your face tastes like flour.”

Both burst out laughing, pushing Chanyeol off him to finally breathe. Baekhyun fans himself as he tries to remember what he’s supposed to be doing. Right. Jam. 

He looks at the director, who’s looking at him so tenderly and Baekhyun has to shy away or else they wouldn’t finish anything. Chanyeol takes Baekhyun’s hand to hold it while the baker does what he needs to do. 

“What about your jam?” Baekhyun pouts, pointing at Chanyeol’s unattended strawberries. 

“I was hoping you’d let me off without the jam? It looks difficult for me to do. Pleaseee.” Chanyeol is actually pleading cutely and Baekhyun short circuits. 

“Did you k-kiss me on purpose to get away from making jam?” Baekhyun narrows his eyes at the director. 

“Well yes…” Chanyeol answers, Baekhyun gapes incredulously. “...But I really wanted to kiss you. You looked so inviting.”

Baekhyun blushes at the director’s words. 

“And I was right. You were more delicious than the strawberries.” Chanyeol continues, and Baekhyun scurries to cover the director’s mouth or else he’d combust from all the embarrassment. 

“Okay stop stop! You don’t have to do the jam!” Baekhyun squawks. 

Chanyeol chuckles and leans to dust off the flour from Baekhyun’s cheek before planting a loud kiss on it. How did things escalate so fast? 

Baekhyun tries his best to finish the rest of the cake. He makes the jam and whipping cream for Chanyeol’s cake as well. All while Chanyeol is just standing so close beside him. Baekhyun wonders how he managed to continue with his baking. 

“You’re being a creep.” Baekhyun comments. 

Chuckling, Chanyeol nods and answers. “I’m not. I’m just trying to get you to be my boyfriend.”

Baekhyun freezes. Boyfriend. 

He tries to play it cool. “By hogging my personal space?”

“Yes. Until you say yes.”

“So if I say yes, you’d back away?”

“Hmm yes.”

“Then...yes.”

“Yes?”

Baekhyun looks up. “Yes.”

Chanyeol looks so happy he envelopes Baekhyun in a tight hug. Baekhyun tries to push him off complaining how Chanyeol lied about backing away, but he’s not exerting enough effort to actually peel the man off him. He likes being hugged too. 

When Chanyeol moves his head, about to kiss Baekhyun, the baker pushes his palm into Chanyeol’s face to stop him from doing what he’s planning to. 

“No that’s enough. You already had your fill of kisses. I need to finish this, Chanyeol!”

Chanyeol pouts and settles to hugging the baker from behind while he works. They’re both smiling like idiots. 

On the way to Chanyeol’s apartment, Baekhyun holds on to the cake on his lap. It’s the one Chanyeol made earlier, and they decided to bring it for dessert. 

“I’m going to get flour on your car.” Baekhyun worries, trying not to lean on the door so much. 

“That’s okay. It’s just flour.”

When they arrive at Chanyeol’s apartment, Chanyeol insists Baekhyun to take a shower first to clean off the flour in his body, while he cooks. Baekhyun gladly complies.

Looking at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, Baekhyun cannot believe this is happening. Chanyeol is Baekhyun’s boyfriend now. He slaps himself just in case this is a dream, because he really doesn’t think this is real. 

Is this it? Did Baekhyun successfully get a hold of his shining star?

When he steps out of the bathroom, Chanyeol smiles at him and steals a kiss. He said Baekhyun looked so cute in his hoodie. He gives him access to his wardrobe, from now on. 

While Baekhyun prepares the cake for their first dinner as a couple, and Chanyeol is taking a shower, Baekhyun couldn’t help but giggle at the thought of them kissing. He couldn’t believe it happened and the feeling was amazing. If he could, he would kiss the man any time of day. 

Chanyeol steps out of the bathroom and heads directly to the kitchen, where his boyfriend is. He leans on the counter in front of him and flashes that big smile of his. When Baekhyun looks up, he gets a mini heart attack. Chanyeol is right in front of him, all freshened up from his bath and he looks so different. His hair is down, the long streaks clumping up to hang against his forehead. Baekhyun finds it hard to contain the emotions. 

Chanyeol looks so cute with his hair down. 

“What is it? You look distressed?” Chanyeol asks.

Baekhyun immediately covers his face. “I do? I’m...not.”

“Baekhyun, can we please be honest from now on?” 

“Sorry. I just...you look so cute. I think I’m malfunctioning again.” Baekhyun honestly admits. 

Chanyeol walks to hug his boyfriend. “You’re the cute one here, baby.”

Baekhyun squeals upon hearing the term of endearment and hides his face against his boyfriend’s chest. “Stop it Park Chanyeol! You can’t just attack me like that!”

Chanyeol chuckles and tightens the hug on Baekhyun. “Aigoo, you’re the cutest bean, aren’t you?”

  
  


Chanyeol and Baekhyun’s relationship flourish from then on. Chanyeol is just the perfect boyfriend. He picks Baekhyun up every morning and drives him to work. He even buys him coffee, which Baekhyun prepares just because it’s his job to do. Chanyeol fully volunteers at the shelter now and enjoys taking care of all the dogs. He supports Baekhyun whenever he tries on new recipes and helps him take creative shots of the cakes for his portfolio. 

Baekhyun becomes a regular visitor at the studio as well. A secret guest, because he only sneaks in to meet Chanyeol in his office. One time, after confirming from Chanyeol that Sehun is busy making copies, Baekhyun pays his boyfriend a visit. They whisper to each other, Baekhyun on Chanyeol’s lap as they fool around and giggle at just about anything. They end up making out in Chanyeol’s office. But then Sehun accidentally finds out about them dating because well...Sehun never knocks. 

For a whole hour, the couple explains to a mad Sehun, how it all happened and why they did not tell him. He forgives them eventually, with promises of letting him come to at least five dates. After sealing the deal, Sehun expresses how happy he is for them. However, he threatens Chanyeol not to hurt his Baekhyunee hyung or else he’s going to get beaten into a pulp. Chanyeol thinks it’s ridiculous because he is Sehun’s best friend but he’s the one being threatened. 

And because Sehun has a loud mouth, Chanyeol receives calls from Jongin and Kyungsoo, shortly after their confrontation, asking about his new boyfriend. Jongin excitedly invites him and Baekhyun to a party he’s throwing two days from now, when he gets back from Paris, so they could all meet him. 

Chanyeol had no choice but to say yes. 

That evening, while Baekhyun rests on his couch after dinner, Chanyeol comes in to lie down, using his boyfriend’s lap as head rest. Baekhyun smiles down at him and plays with his hair, a habit he developed whenever Chanyeol leans his head against Baekhyun’s shoulder. They stay like that for a while, with the comforting silence enveloping them. 

“Chanyeol, can I ask a question?” Baekhyun softly asks and Chanyeol nods. 

“Why me? I mean... Why do you like me?” 

Baekhyun has been having these thoughts and questions why of all the people vying for Chanyeol’s attention, he chose him. He wonders maybe it’s his persistence that got him here. Or because he’s always there that he left Chanyeol with no choice but to notice him.

Chanyeol chuckles and sits up, taking his boyfriend’s hand. “What are you saying, baby? You’re asking weird questions again, aigoo.” Chanyeol grabs Baekhyun’s face and peppers it with kisses until the barista smiles and forgets what he asked in the first place. 

Except Baekhyun did not forget. 

  
  


When Chanyeol and Baekhyun arrive at Jongin’s party two days later, the venue is packed. Baekhyun isn’t used to these kinds of places. Whenever he goes out for a drink with Jongdae, the samgyupsal restaurant nearby is the place they go to all the time. The glaring neon lights and booming bass of the club made Baekhyun jump, his shoulders shrugged as he held on to Chanyeol’s hand and clung to his back. The director notices Baekhyun’s discomfort and tightens the hold on his boyfriend’s hand, pulling him closer to speak into Baekhyun’s ear. 

“You okay, baby?” Chanyeol had to yell out the words because of the noise around them but Baekhyun still felt the tenderness in his voice. With a small nod, he earns a big smile from Chanyeol, and after all this time, Baekhyun’s heart still skips a beat. 

Chanyeol pulls the smaller in front of him to switch places, making sure to cage him in with his big arms as they squeeze themselves into the sea of gyrating bodies in the venue, making sure people would give them a way to pass through. 

At this moment, Baekhyun should be grossed out by the horrible blend of the musk of sweat and alcohol, drunk couples grinding against each other on the dance floor and loud heart jumping beats. But he isn’t. He couldn’t care less to any of that when his back is pressed against his boyfriend’s hard chest. Baekhyun feels so secure and taken care of that he can let the uncomfortable vibe slide. 

In addition to that, Chanyeol speaks to his ear, so close to him, that his lips touch his sensitive skin. 

“You still okay? We’re almost there, Baekhyunee.” The smaller nods, and he’s not even sure if his loud heart beat is caused by the booming bass of the speakers or by his boyfriend speaking so close. Baekhyun continues to walk to where the taller man maneuvers him to. Chanyeol’s words reassured Baekhyun and he thinks maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad night. 

When they finally reach Chanyeol’s friends’ table, Baekhyun is instantly greeted by a smirking Sehun. Obviously, he’s teasing them. The barista assesses this clingy boy and concludes he’s had enough drinks to make him so jumpy and clingy. Baekhyun returns the hug he gave but it was cut short when Chanyeol picks Sehun up by his shirt, peeling him off from his tiny boyfriend. 

“Hey, he’s mine.” Baekhyun isn’t sure if he heard it right. 

After that comical scene, Chanyeol reclaims his spot beside his boyfriend and wraps his arm around his waist, his hand finding rest on his right hip, catching the attention of his best friends in the table. Everyone is looking up at Baekhyun with a tender smile. And just like that, Baekhyun’s worries slowly melt away. 

“This is Byun Baekhyun. My boyfriend. Be nice to him.” Chanyeol announces and although they have been official for more than a month now, this is the first time he’s been announced as Chanyeol’s boyfriend to anyone other than Jongdae and his boss. And the dogs. It’s a totally different feeling. Baekhyun doesn’t quite know how to describe it. But he compares what he felt at that moment to be the same as what he felt when he baked cupcakes for the first time and his mother was so proud of him that she gave away the cupcakes to neighbors and told them proudly that it was her son who made them. 

Baekhyun feels special. 

Chanyeol points at each of his friends, introducing them to the barista. “This is Kyungsoo, the singer. And this is Jongin, the model. They’re together.” The couple waves at him and greets him with a big smile. 

“And you know Sehun.” Chanyeol continues. 

“The best friend.” Sehun finishes Chanyeol’s little introduction for him, earning complaints from the two other best friends. 

Baekhyun snickers, his shoulders shaking at the funny trio. He then politely bows at them, giving a shy smile to return their warm welcome. 

“It’s nice to finally meet you. Chanyeol told me a lot of stories about you guys.” Baekhyun's voice softens when he feels a little embarrassed from the way Chanyeol’s friends stare at him. 

The director did not miss that and realized what the cause was. 

“Why are you guys staring at us like that? You guys are being creepy. You’re scaring off Baekhyunee.” Chanyeol narrows his eyes at them. 

“Oh sorry. Were we staring?” Kyungsoo chuckles lightly. 

“Sorry Hyung. We couldn’t help but be amazed at you two. You look so good together.” Jongin explains and Sehun nods, agreeing to what the model said. 

Baekhyun feels his cheeks heat up at the compliment. He gazes up at his boyfriend and gets shocked when he sees his ears are so red. Chanyeol is blushing. 

Baekhyun smiles tenderly and nudges the director. “Hey, you okay?”

Chanyeol looks down and leans a little to hear the younger’s words. He tilts his head and shakes his head in confusion. “What do you mean? Why would I not be okay?”

“Well…” Baekhyun leans closer to Chanyeol’s ear and whispers. “You’re red.”

The little gasp that Chanyeol lets out pulls all of Baekhyun’s heartstrings closer to him. Baekhyun still cannot believe he is seeing all these sides of Chanyeol he’s never seen before. Not even in his wildest daydreams did he think Chanyeol was this cute. 

“I am?” Chanyeol puffs out his cheeks and covers them quickly. The barista guffaws at the sight and brings his hands up to help his boyfriend cover his cheeks.

“You guys are ridiculously sweet. It’s cute. But it’s ridiculous.” Sehun stands up to pull Baekhyun to sit beside him. Chanyeol takes a deep breath and follows to take the seat adjacent to his boyfriend. 

After rounds of drinking and laughing at the funniest stories about Chanyeol when they were a lot younger, Baekhyun finds himself having so much fun with Chanyeol’s friends, and so far, he thinks they’re having fun with him too. 

He learns that Jongin is similar to Sehun except he’s much nicer with his words. Kyungsoo, even after drinking as much as the others, still remains quiet but Baekhyun observes he laughs louder now. He thinks even Kyungsoo’s laughs are music to anyone’s ears. Sehun clinging to his arm and laying his head on the barista’s shoulder isn’t surprising to the group by now. Baekhyun already knows Sehun clings when he gets drunk and he’s kinda okay with it. 

His boyfriend, however, looks like he’s not. 

Chanyeol has been staring daggers into Sehun’s direction ever since he became touchy with the barista. Baekhyun sensed it immediately and told the director it’s okay, but he only earned a pout from the big baby. Baekhyun giggles at the childlike behavior, Mr. Loey is the cutest when he gets jealous like this. 

To appease Chanyeol’s frustration, Baekhyun stretches his leg out, until his foot finds his boyfriend’s shin, giving it a soft rub down the length of it. Chanyeol’s eyes widen at Baekhyun, his face that of a confused and surprised puppy. The barista answers him with a pursed smile and a cute wink, his gaze becoming so tender and loving and Chanyeol is in a trance in an instant. With a silly grin, the director moves his own foot to counter his boyfriend’s foot attack, aiming to gain control over him. They battle for a few seconds, without anyone in their table knowing, and it only stops when Chanyeol decides to use both his feet to lock Baekhyun’s leg in between. Baekhyun’s jaw drops at the sly move and mouths the words “you cheated” to his boyfriend, glaring like a little lion. Both were smiling so wide and they stayed like that for a while, locked limbs and all. 

“You two, did you already have sex?” Sehun is really really drunk now. And when he’s really really drunk, the no filter language aggravates. 

Everyone at their table is in shock at the sudden inquiry. Kyungsoo’s eyes, though normally big, went even bigger. Jongin, the model who always worries about how he carries himself in public, spews out the liquor he was just drinking. Chanyeol and Baekhyun, well...they’re red. From their faces to their ears. They can’t even look at each other’s eyes. Baekhyun suddenly feels suffocated.

“Sehun I think you need to breathe some fresh air. Do you want to come with me outside for a sec?” Jongin suggests, already standing up to help Sehun, in case he gets dizzy.

“I’ll take him. I think I need air too. Is it okay?” Baekhyun is looking at Jongin with pleading puppy eyes, how could he say no to that? Chanyeol gives them permission to leave as well, still trying to recover from that embarrassing moment.

After what feels like an eternity squeezing through the sea of people, Baekhyun finally reaches the door, with Sehun clinging to his side. When he pushed the glass door to step out of the club, a girl was about to walk in, and they almost bumped into her. The barista quickly bows to apologize but her eyes were on Sehun instead. She then turns her head to give Baekhyun a small smile before walking away. 

Baekhyun then half-carries Sehun out of the club. They both step out and are glad to breathe in air, without their ears popping out to every beat of the speakers. They walk past some group of club-goers who are smoking and chit-chatting, and takes a seat on the curb.

“Are you okay, Sehunnie?” Baekhyun asks the younger, letting him lay his head on his shoulders. Sehun nods and hiccups.

“I’m okay. Thanks, Hyung. Sorry about earlier.” Sehun slurs in his words, his eyes were droopy but he’s smiling, he’s having a good time.

“About what?” Baekhyun tilts his head and asks.

“About you and Chanyeol hyung’s se-” Sehun flatly answers, but is cut off by a hand on his mouth. Baekhyun must still be embarrassed about it.

“Don’t worry Sehunnie, let’s not talk about it, okay?” Baekhyun pats the drunk boy’s head.

Baekhyun and Chanyeol, they always kiss. A lot. They make out in the car, on the couch of their apartments, in Chanyeol’s office. Those involve a lot of touching and groping until both are flushing hot, but that’s about it. 

They haven’t talked about doing anything more than what they already do, nor did they act upon their sexual desires. It’s Baekhyun who always stops it before things escalate, and surprisingly, Chanyeol doesn’t object. 

However, when Chanyeol bee-lines to the nearest bathroom after their heated make out sessions, Baekhyun knows he’s frustrating the director. And so he gets frustrated too. Especially because whenever he comes out from the bathroom, Chanyeol greets him and cuddles him like nothing happened. 

It’s not like Baekhyun doesn’t want to do it, he’s had crazy daydreams about those too, something he would never admit to his boyfriend. The problem is, Baekhyun is worried he wouldn’t satisfy the director’s needs, and a little scared of what’s going to happen to him, physically.

He has read a lot of things on the internet, saying how painful it is for someone’s first time receiving. Baekhyun is a virgin. He wants to be fully ready when they do it. He just wishes Chanyeol would not get mad at him for taking so long. 

“What’s with the deep sighs, Hyung?” Sehun interrupts his thoughts, Baekhyun doesn't even realize he was sighing if it wasn’t for the receptionist pointing it out. He shakes his head, enough of these thoughts Byun Baekhyun.

“Nothing. I’m okay.” Baekhyun smiles at the younger, forcing himself to divert his thoughts to anything else. The first thing that popped in his head is that girl they bumped into, a few minutes ago. She was tall and her legs looked really good in her black mini dress. Baekhyun thinks she looked familiar. 

“Hey, who was that girl at the door earlier? She was looking at you. I think she knows you.” Baekhyun asks Sehun who was quietly resting his eyes beside him.

“What girl? There’re a lot of girls inside, Hyung.” Sehun answers, nosing his hyung’s shoulder. 

“Tall, long hair, black dress. Really pretty and elegant.” Baekhyun describes her to Sehun, but the look in the younger’s face says he has no clue who the mystery lady is. Baekhyun shrugs the thought away.

  
  


“Hi.” 

Jongin and Kyungsoo look up in surprise at the person who approached their table. This night is just full of surprises huh.

“Joy? What are you doing here?” Jongin frantically asks, causing Chanyeol to quickly turn around from his seat the moment he hears her name. 

“I heard my dearest cousin is throwing a party and I happen to be in town so I decided to drop by.” She smiles and waves at Kyungsoo then glances to the director. 

“Hi Chanyeol. It’s been a long time. How have you been?” Joy is still the same as Chanyeol remembers her to be. Still so prim and elegant, everything about her is attractive. But she looks much better now, she’s glowing. Happy. And Chanyeol knows exactly why.

The director stands up to greet his ex-girlfriend, giving her a quick hug. “Hi. Oh my god, it really has been so long. I’m good. But you.. You look really great Joy, how are you?” Chanyeol nods, praising her aura. 

“I’m really good, thank you. It’s my second time coming home from Paris. The first time was still for work and it was so hectic, but this time, I’m on a break so I decided to see how you guys are doing. You’re still the same as when I left you.” 

Bitter memories from that day flash into Chanyeol’s head, but he now knows it all happened for a reason, for the best. Joy is happy without him. Maybe he has known for a long time, but seeing her now, made all realizations clear to him. 

Joy crosses her arm around Chanyeol’s. A habit she still does to her closest friends.

“You changed a lot though, Joy. Much prettier now than before.” Kyungsoo comments, giving her a genuine smile.

“Aw, thank you Kyungsoo. Models do have perks. Right, Nini?” Jongin is about to agree, but the nickname only makes him pout. He doesn’t like it when his relatives call him by his nickname as a kid, especially in public places. Chanyeol and Kyungsoo chuckle in chorus because they know how much Jongin hates it.

“Oh and I saw Sehun at the door. I think he’s a little tipsy, so I guess he didn’t recognize me. But is he dating that cutie?” Joy giggles at the thought.

Chanyeol’s brows furrow and he tips his head to look at Joy. “My cutie?”

The model realizes what Chanyeol just said and she gives him a soft pat to his cheek. “Your cutie is really cute. I’m so glad you have him now. What’s his name? How long have you guys been together?” Joy’s questions were full of excitement, Chanyeol thinks Joy did not change one bit.

“His name is Baekhyun. We’ve only been dating for more than a month now.” Chanyeol feels giddy talking about his boyfriend to his ex-girlfriend. 

“I can’t wait to meet him. Also, you’re blushing Park Chanyeol. Still so cute, aigoo.” Joy remarks and Chanyeol blushes harder.

  
  


Baekhyun finally remembers where he saw the mysterious lady. The new magazine that arrived at the cafe the other day had her as the cover. Her name is…

“Joy Noona? It’s her!” Sehun exclames beside him on their way back to their table. Baekhyun freezes on that spot, watching Sehun’s back as he jogs to where their table is.

It’s her. Chanyeol’s ex-girlfriend. The one who’s always included in Chanyeol’s and his friends’ stories. They all tell Baekhyun she’s gone now, having a life overseas and all that. Everyone in the group seemed like they were all in love with her. And if that was the case for them, he wonders how much love Chanyeol had for her. 

She’s here, caressing his boyfriend’s face with so much care. Baekhyun suddenly cannot feel anything. Seeing that girl softly touching Chanyeol’s cheek while his boyfriend blushes hard, stirs something inside of him, that he finds himself unable to move or do anything. The loud atmosphere suddenly became muffled and it’s slowly constricting Baekhyun’s breathing. Just as Sehun catches everyone’s attention at their table, Baekhyun gathers up all his energy and he runs. 

He runs away. As fast as he can. Not knowing when or where to stop. The cold air slaps his face like a wake up call. Beads of tears roll down his face and Baekhyun doesn’t even know exactly why he’s crying. He doesn’t even know what he feels right now.

He just wants to wake up from this daydream.

  
  


Sun rays seep into the apartment, hitting Baekhyun’s cheek just enough to warm it up. He turns to his side, careful not to cause too much noise, to purposely bask in the Sunday morning heat. It’s comforting. 

Baekhyun didn’t even get a wink of sleep. After his sudden sprint last night, he found himself knocking on Jongdae’s apartment door at the crack of dawn. He couldn’t go back to his apartment because he knows Chanyeol might follow him there. His thoughts were still all over the place and he didn’t know how to face Chanyeol, afraid he’d only make things worse than it already is. Baekhyun needs to sort his life out first.

His phone has been buzzing all night, unanswered calls from Chanyeol and Sehun. His boyfriend kept texting him, asking where he is and what happened. Baekhyun only replied to him when he hit the couch, with the words “I’m fine, Chanyeol. I’m safe. Just tired. Sorry.” before he turned his phone off. 

Thinking all night about what happened, Baekhyun feels like he’s been bottling up these thoughts of being unworthy to be called Chanyeol's boyfriend. The man is too close to perfection. He’s just… Baekhyun. No matter how much Baekhyun thinks about it, he always ends up putting himself down. He believes that he deserves to be happy and be loved, yes, but he just doesn’t think he deserves to be loved by someone like Chanyeol.

Love.

Baekhyun has fallen in love with someone so out of reach. Dreams come true, yes. Any success story starts with having a dream, and then they work hard to achieve it. But most success stories stop there. They don’t go beyond. What happens after achieving that dream? 

Baekhyun thinks a dream come true is only a flicker of a moment in any success story. The real challenge is how you hold on to it. In his case, he thinks it’s too hard to keep holding on to something out of his level. You jump high, even fly, and you grab that star, hold tight to it. But after some time, holding on becomes difficult, and your grip slowly slips away because how else can you keep holding on to a star, when you don’t even have a platform to step on in the first place? Like the song, you’re hanging by a moment. 

Joy is like a goddess. Baekhyun believes she was Chanyeol’s greatest love. 

On the other hand, Baekhyun thinks Chanyeol only went out with him because he’s flaunting himself right in front of the man. He’s easy, always available, and doesn't require much effort. 

But no matter how much Baekhyun gives to show how much he loves the director, when push comes to shove, Chanyeol wouldn’t choose him. 

How can he even compete with her? It’s a loss before the battle could even start. 

Baekhyun’s thoughts are disturbed when his best friend pops his head over him from the back of the couch. 

“Hi Bae. You okay?” Jongdae’s words are comforting, one of the few times he doesn’t hear him screaming or whining. Baekhyun is just glad he has Jongdae. 

“Not really. Do you think I’m a bad person, Dae?” Baekhyun softly asks. 

Jongdae shakes his head and reaches to stroke his best friend’s hair. “You’re the kindest, most generous person I know Byun Baekhyun. I could name a hundred adjectives to call you and bad is not even one of them.”

“But I ran away. I’m running away from Chanyeol. He probably hates me now.” Baekhyun sighs and looks out the window. 

“Hey no. Look at me.” Jongdae shakes his best friend. 

“You’re allowed to feel bad about yourself and you’re allowed to feel things like this. That doesn’t make you a bad person. And I’m pretty sure Chanyeol doesn’t hate you.” Jongdae nods. 

“How can you be so sure?” Baekhyun is pouting.

“Because he’s been texting me since last night, looking for you and making sure you’re okay.” 

“But I’m not okay.”

“I know. But I had to tell him a white lie so he would stop worrying.”

Baekhyun makes that long sad pouty face and leans in to hug his best friend. “Thank you, Dae.”

“You know I’m always here for you, right?” Baekhyun hides his face on his best friend’s chest and nods. 

“And you know you have to face him sooner or later?” Baekhyun lets out a deep sigh and nods slowly. 

“Whatever your decision is, Baekhyun, know that I’ll always be here for you. I don’t know if it helps, and I’m not just saying this because you’re sad and you’re my best friend, but I really do think you’re such a wonderful person who deserves all the happiness in this world. But to have it, you have to know that you’re the only one capable of finding your own happiness.” Baekhyun leans back to see his best friend’s face. He’s already crying fat tears, grateful to have Jongdae as his best pal. 

“Aigoo, why are you crying?” Jongdae wipes the tears off Baekhyun’s face. “You do know you’re super ugly when you cry?” Jongdae cackles while Baekhyun punches his shoulder lightly.

After breakfast with Jongdae, Baekhyun sends him out of the apartment with a big hug. He’s skipping work today and Jongdae is very supportive, telling him to rest and feel better soon. Baekhyun takes a seat on the couch and stares at his phone lying on the coffee table. He turns it on after having a five minute internal conflict. He hears the tone go off for a while. So many text messages from Chanyeol. 

[Yeollie❤️]: Baby, are you okay?

[Yeollie❤️]: Are you mad at me?

[Yeollie❤️]: Did I do something wrong?

[Yeollie❤️]: Please call me when you read my messages. 

[Yeollie❤️]: You’re not here at the cafe. 

[Yeollie❤️]: Your new barista messed up my coffee. 

[Yeollie❤️]: Sehun is quiet today. 

[Yeollie❤️]: I think he misses you.

[Yeollie❤️]: Please call me. 

[Yeollie❤️]: ☹️

Baekhyun takes a deep breath and taps on the call button. Chanyeol answers after the first ring. 

“Baekhyun? Baby! Where are you? Are you okay? I’ve been so worried.”

“Hi Chanyeol.” Baekhyun softly answers. 

Chanyeol sighs softly. “Hi baby.”

“Are you working? Did I disturb you?”

“No baby, I couldn’t work anyway. Are you okay?”

“I’m okay. Can we meet later after your work?”

“Where are you? I can meet you right now.”

“What? No, let’s meet later. You must be busy with Kyungsoo’s album launch. I can wait.”

Chanyeol pouts like a puppy. “Alright. I’ll see you later.”

After their short phone call, Baekhyun slumps back on the couch and sighs loudly. He looks at the wallpaper on his phone and smiles, a picture of Chanyeol he took back when he was being dragged away by the dogs at the park.

Baekhyun meets Chanyeol at their bench spot at the park. The director arrives early, jogging to meet Baekhyun when he spots him walking near. Chanyeol immediately envelops Baekhyun in a tight hug, kissing his hair and sighing in relief. 

“I was so worried. I’m so glad you’re safe.” Chanyeol speaks into his hair and Baekhyun could almost feel his tears welling out. He buries his face on Chanyeol’s chest and clings around him. 

“I’m sorry Chanyeollie,” is all Baekhyun could muffle. Chanyeol shakes his head and pets the smaller man’s head from behind, tracing the little hairs down his fringe. Baekhyun shivers at the tender gesture. Chanyeol leans back a little to kiss his boyfriend’s temple. They stay attached like that for a while, rocking a little as if they’re slow dancing. They’re thankful that it’s already night time, no prying eyes around to judge them or reprimand their behaviors. 

“Are you hungry?” Chanyeol softly asks after some time. He gets a small nod in response. 

“Do you like pizza?” Baekhyun mumbles into the director’s shirt. He feels Chanyeol’s chest vibrating and the sound of his laughter is so calming to Baekhyun’s being, that it easily became his favorite sound. Baekhyun wonders if he could record it tonight. 

“I love pizza. Let’s get pizza.” Chanyeol nods but neither makes any move to break the hug. 

Baekhyun does not want to peel away from the director’s hug but his stomach begins to grumble. Chanyeol laughs and Baekhyun blushes in embarrassment. The director takes Baekhyun’s hand and leads him to the nearest pizza place in the area. 

After finishing three quarters of the pizza they ordered, Baekhyun finds himself blushing while he watches his hand being played by the man sitting beside him. Chanyeol insisted on this set-up, with the reasoning that it’s easier to feed his baby when they sit side by side. 

They talk like how they usually do, Chanyeol telling him about work today and how excited and nervous he is for Kyungsoo’s album launch. Baekhyun holds the older’s hand and squeezes it encouragingly. 

“It will be a huge success, believe me.” Baekhyun reassures Chanyeol. 

“Why should I believe you, hm?” Chanyeol’s tone is playful, a huge grin plastered on his face. 

“Because...you are amazing. And you put your heart in whatever you do. If you don’t know yet Mr. Loey, passion and hard work is the formula for success.” Baekhyun nods cutely, his eyes crinkling as he smiles at the director.

Chanyeol chuckles and boops the barista’s nose. “Why thank you for the kind assessment, Mr. Einstein.”

“Do you wanna get out of here? I found an arcade nearby.” Baekhyun tilts his head, picking up the last bit of his pizza and feeds it to Chanyeol.

“An arcade? Aren’t we too old for that?” Chanyeol asks with his mouth full.

Baekhyun shakes his head and drags the director away.

That night, Baekhyun learns that Chanyeol is a really competitive man. He gets frustrated when he almost wins at video games and cries out when he loses. Baekhyun beats him in all the games they played. That night, Chanyeol learns that Baekhyun is really good at arcade games and he’s too cute when he does a little celebration dance for his victories. They had fun, both of them, especially when they spent all their tokens trying to get the strawberry plushie from the crane machine.

“For someone who called arcade games childish, you really gave it your all in there huh? Look, you’re even sweating!” Baekhyun reaches to wipe off the sweat on Chanyeol’s forehead. They’re hand in hand, walking to the direction of the parking lot. Chanyeol is laughing loudly, swinging their arms in between, looking oh so adorable in his oversized hoodie.

“I used to spend so much time in arcades back in high school. I missed it! It’s been so long, I’m kinda rusty.” Baekhyun guffaws at Chanyeol’s explanation, hiding his face into the plushie he’s holding.

“Is that your way of getting away from the fact that you lost all the games we played?” Baekhyun teases the director, stepping farther from him in case he attacks with tickles. Except Chanyeol’s hold on Baekhyun’s hand gets tighter, he’s not letting the strawberry head get away from him. He pulls the shorter close to him, wrapping his arm around the barista’s shoulders.

“I’m gonna ask you for a rematch and I’m going to win. One of these days.” Chanyeol’s childish tone is too cute to ignore, but Baekhyun’s thoughts get clouded with the thought of Chanyeol believing in the possibility of a next time.

They walk back to the car silently. Chanyeol notices the change in Baekhyun’s mood. He opens the door for Baekhyun and waits for the barista to slide in, not closing it just yet. Chanyeol stands beside him, searching for Baekhyun’s gaze. When they lock eyes, Baekhyun sees the worry and the confusion in Chanyeol’s stare and Baekhyun’s heart breaks.

“You okay, baby?” The words are too soft, too nice and too warm for Baekhyun’s heart, but he knows he shouldn’t let this change his mind. He needs to do it tonight. He needs to break up with Chanyeol.

“I’m okay, just tired. Can we go home?” Baekhyun settles on the passenger seat and pulls the seatbelt over him. Chanyeol stares at him for a while, but decides not to push anymore.

When they reach Baekhyun’s apartment building, Baekhyun stops Chanyeol from getting out of the car and walking him to his unit. The director looks so confused by Baekhyun's behavior, wondering how tired the barista is to be acting like this.

“Baby, get some sleep tonight okay? I think it’s better if you skip work tomorrow, too. I’ll come by first thing in the morning with breakfast, how does that sound?” Chanyeol just has to be the perfect boyfriend.

“You don’t have to do it anymore.” Baekhyun is looking down, fiddling with his fingers. He couldn’t look Chanyeol in the eye or else he’d cry and it would ruin his plan.

“Baekhyun, what’s wrong?” Chanyeol’s tone is rather serious than before. Baekhyun’s heart is hammering in his chest and his breathing is becoming more difficult. He closes his eyes, a tear rolling on the side where Chanyeol couldn’t see.

“I think we should break up.” The moment the words leave Baekhyun’s lips, he swears it felt like an arrow shot him straight to his heart. 

“What?” Chanyeol has to ask to confirm what he just thought he heard. 

“We should break up.” Baekhyun repeats the words and quickly climbs out of the car, bursting into tears as he runs towards his apartment building. He doesn’t look back, even if he knows he just left his heart in there, broken and crying, together with a strawberry plushie, sad and abandoned.

Baekhyun sits by the door the whole night, crying. He wonders if Chanyeol just easily accepted the break up. Why hasn’t he followed him into the apartment? Why hasn’t he called or texted? Did he not need answers or explanations from him? 

Chanyeol doesn’t consider him a loss. 

Just like that, Baekhyun cries his hardest. It’s been years when he last cried this much. The last time was the night he lost his mother. But tonight, he’s just...lost. 

  
  


Baekhyun spends the next days coping up in Jongdae’s apartment. His best friend is kind enough to take him in, knowing he needs someone right now and letting him alone with his thoughts would only make things more painful. 

The first few days were difficult. Every show he watches, with or without Jongdae, he ends up crying no matter what genre it is. He cries everyday whenever he makes his morning coffee. He blasts songs produced by Chanyeol during his showers and cries even more when it’s Kyungsoo who’s singing. He’s going to miss Chanyeol’s friends. Especially Sehun. 

Sehun. He remembers unread text messages from Sehun are still sitting on his phone. Baekhyun decides to read them and tears up at the receptionist’s messages. 

[Sehunnie]: Hyung, where are you?

[Sehunnie]: Did you quit work?

[Sehunnie]: Your new barista hates me. 

[Sehunnie]: I won’t ask for free coffee anymore.

[Sehunnie]: Just come back. 

[Sehunnie]: Jongdae hyung sucks. 

“Hi Bae! I brought chicken. Let’s eat dinner.” Jongdae comes home that evening with chicken. 

“Sehun said you suck?” Baekhyun asks his best friend who is currently biting on one drumstick. Jongdae furrows his brows in confusion. 

“Oh. That. Yeah.” Jongdae chuckles knowingly. 

“Why?” 

“He kept pestering me, asking me where I live. I think it’s because he knows you’re staying with me. Of course, I never tell.” Jongdae shrugs, picking up a chicken wing and putting it on Baekhyun’s plate. 

“He wants to see me?” It’s quite surprising to Baekhyun. He never thought Sehun would worry so much about him. 

“Mhmm. And he gets scary. Or so he thought. Do you know he threatens me with this Soo hyung of his? That he’s going to beat me up real good? He even showed me how big that hyung’s eyes are! I’m not even scared of him!” Jongdae stretches his eyes to mimic what the receptionist did and Baekhyun laughs loudly at the action. Kyungsoo can really be scary, based on the stories he heard. 

“Be scared, Dae. He’s really badass.” Baekhyun nods and Jongdae is intrigued. 

“Well, he can try. I have Mr. Kim to back me up. Oh! Speaking of Mr. Kim, he’s asking if you already passed your application for the patisserie school?” Jongdae asks with his mouth full. 

“I did. Just this afternoon.” Baekhyun purses his lips and stares at the food on his plate. 

“You okay Bae?” Jongdae reaches to squeeze his best friend’s shoulder. The latter looks up and smiles a little, nodding slowly. 

“This is for the best, right?” Baekhyun asks and suddenly, he gets pulled in for a hug. 

“Aigoo. Everything will be alright, Baekhyun-ah.” Jongdae assures his best friend. 

  
  


Baekhyun wakes up one early morning to his alarm going off. A little confused and still groggy, because he doesn’t recall setting an alarm the night before, he reaches for his phone on the coffee table to read what the alarm is for. 

“Album launch 🙈”

Today is the day Kyungsoo’s album will be released to the world. Chanyeol worked so hard for this album, it’s his biggest project to date. Baekhyun is reminded of the time Chanyeol talks so animatedly about this album, how insanely attractive the director was during that time, and how Baekhyun fell harder for the man. Chanyeol’s passion for his craft is so beautiful, Baekhyun just wants the world to know it. And today, they’re going to. 

Chanyeol set that alarm on Baekhyun’s phone, that one night they hung out at Chanyeol's office. “Just in case you forget, because I need you to come, okay?” was what Chanyeol said to him. 

Baekhyun frowns deeply. He ruined it for Chanyeol. “Ugh, Byun Baekhyun, you are such a terrible person.” He groans and kicks in annoyance. 

In the middle of Baekhyun’s self-loathing, the doorbell rings. The barista is quite confused as to who might be at the door of Jongdae’s apartment at this time of day. He glances at Jongdae’s closed door, he’s probably still asleep. 

Baekhyun thinks the person might have mistaken the apartment for someone else’s. Except the doorbell rings again, and now it’s followed by a knock. Baekhyun stands up and grabs the closest thing he sees, an umbrella, just in case it’s a kidnapper he needs to beat up. 

Baekhyun gets the shock of his life when he looks through the door’s peephole. Why is this person here and how did this person find out where he is?

“Baekhyun-ssi? I know you’re in there. Please come out.” Baekhyun hears the call from the other side of the door. 

With confusion painted on his face, he opens the door and peeks his head out to speak to his surprise guest. 

“Oh there you are! Hi! I’m Joy. Can I come in?” Joy flashes her beautiful smile and Baekhyun remembers how intimidated he is of this lady. But Baekhyun has manners. So he opens the door to let the lady in, looking down the hallway after. 

“Nobody came here with me. Are you expecting someone else?” Joy asks while she toes off her designer shoes, seeing Baekhyun shake his head. 

“Why are you holding an umbrella?” She points at the barista’s hand. 

“Oh sorry, it’s nothing. Please come in.” Baekhyun sets the umbrella aside and leads the woman into the living room, in this case, Baekhyun’s bedroom. Joy settles on the couch, looking around the place. 

For a moment, the room goes silent. Baekhyun doesn’t know what to do or how to act. He doesn’t know what to offer this guest, would she like some coffee or tea, or should he prepare a breakfast meal? This is the first time the two of them are meeting, since Baekhyun ran away from that party. Why she’s here, Baekhyun has no idea. 

“You look distressed. Sorry for my intrusion.” Joy even has the sense to match that physique. Again, Baekhyun is intimidated. 

“No it’s alright. Can I offer you some coffee? Or tea?” Baekhyun politely asks the stranger. Up close and with minimal makeup, she looks stunning than the magazine shoots she had. 

“I’m good, don’t worry about me.” Baekhyun nods. 

“You must be wondering why I’m here?” Joy fishes out something from her bag, an envelope quite thick with whatever’s inside it. Is this the part where he gets offered cash to leave Chanyeol alone, like in most dramas? Baekhyun wonders. Except he already left Chanyeol so there is no point to that. 

“You must hate me?” Joy starts and Baekhyun shakes his head profusely. She giggles and Baekhyun is confused. 

“We know everything, Baekhyun-ssi. Chanyeol knows everything. Why you ran away, why you broke up with him, why you kept hiding, he knows.” 

Baekhyun wonders who told them, and there’s only one person who knows everything about him. Jongdae. He’ll deal with him later. 

“Do you know when me and Chanyeol were dating, we rarely fight. But when we do, we hurt each other with a lot of words we barely even mean. Then it’s always him who makes the first move to fix the problem even if I was the one who caused it.” Joy snickers to the thought. 

“When he found out you ran away, he was so confused. But do you know what he did? He ran too. He looked for you, even ran all the way to your apartment and to the cafe. We didn’t know he had all that strength in such lanky legs. When he fell out of exhaustion, the guys brought him back to his place and told him to rest. Do you know what he said before he fell asleep?” Joy looks up at the boy sitting across her. 

“Baekhyun. He’s not tired of me, right?”

Baekhyun’s tears roll off his eyes and he quickly wipes them off, turning his head away and hoping the guest didn’t notice. 

“That night you broke up with him, he stayed outside your door and waited for you to come out. He had to leave in the morning though, because of work. We had drinks that night, me and the guys. We had to look out for him, in case he does something stupid like come here and cry his heart out. His personal request. Do you know what he said that night before he passed out drunk?”

“Baekhyun. He’ll come back, right?”

Baekhyun’s tears shed like opened tap water. He’s hurt the most innocent person in this world. Baekhyun doesn’t deserve to be happy in this lifetime. 

“He believes in you, Baekhyun-ssi. And he respects your decision. So he doesn’t come here asking for answers because he knows you’ll come back and give him them yourself. It’s the first time I’ve seen Chanyeol like that. With so much faith in a person, and in a relationship. He’s matured so much now. He waits for you Baekhyun-ssi. And I’m just here to let you know.”

Joy gives him the envelope. Inside is full of tiny square pieces of paper, that familiar pink color. The sides of some of the papers are a little curved up, but everything is in good condition. Baekhyun covers his mouth and chokes up in tears. Chanyeol kept everything. Even from before they became friends. All his notes, he kept them. 

“You’re special Baekhyun-ssi. I hope you give my friend a chance.” Joy reaches to hold Baekhyun’s knee and it’s comforting. The barista looks up, his gaze clouded with so much tears. 

“But I’m just me.”

“Exactly why he’s waiting.” Joy moves her hand to hold Baekhyun’s and gives it a squeeze. 

Baekhyun cried some more and Joy comforts him the way she can. When Baekhyun calms down, Joy speaks up. 

“So I know this is quite a lot to take in, but we’re running late and we still have a lot to do.” Baekhyun looks at her, confused. 

“What do you mean?” 

“I’m taking you to the album launch. I came here to give you the envelope, maybe make you realize your mistakes, but seeing you now. I think you need him. He needs you too. So you’re coming with me.” Joy stands up and drags Baekhyun away.

The next thing he knows, Baekhyun is in Joy’s car, outside the venue of the live show. He grips on the envelope, close to his heart, and feels the vibrations of his heart beats. 

  
  


Chanyeol slumps on the sofa of the waiting room. Finally, it’s over. The album launch was a success. Chanyeol feels the little bit of energy left in his body leaving and all the stress fades. He checks on his social media accounts and music streaming platforms to read about the netizen’s feedback about the album and the live show and he’s quite satisfied. The sales are skyrocketing too. Chanyeol decides to take a rest before he leaves the venue for the after party, with the face of a certain strawberry head in mind. He wishes he’s here to see this. 

When Chanyeol wakes up, he gets the biggest surprise of seeing Baekhyun seated on the floor, holding his hand against Baekhyun’s cheek. The shorter man has tears and yet Chanyeol finds him so beautiful still. 

“Baekhyun? Y-you came? Is this a dream?” Chanyeol stutters and feels himself close to tears as well. 

Baekhyun scoffs, the tears just don’t stop. “I’m the one who daydreams here, you big oof.”

Chanyeol smiles a bit at the remark. “W-well? Why are you here?” He wants to hold Baekhyun already, maybe wipe his tears and just forget about everything. But he knows Baekhyun has something to say and they both need to hear it. 

Baekhyun sniffles and takes a deep breath. “W-well, my alarm went off this morning. A certain monkey...he was too assertive that I should come here.” Baekhyun is crying hard into Chanyeol’s palm. 

“I’m not sure if I deserve to be forgiven because I’ve been selfish and brash, and I had so little confidence about myself that I put our relationship in danger. I ran away from you and I broke up with you without explaining what happened. I’m so sorry, Chanyeol. I may have also judged you for choosing me just because I’m always there. I realized now that you really like me genuinely. I still don’t know why because I’m just me, but you do. And I know I’m not someone you can be proud of yet, but I promise you I’ll be better.”

Chanyeol sits up and coos Baekhyun’s crying. His tears are falling as well, but he has no time to wipe them off right now. He picks Baekhyun up to sit next to him and he envelops him in a hug, kissing the crying boy all over his face.

“Shh. You don’t have to apologize anymore. I've already forgiven you. What matters is that you’re here now.” Baekhyun clings and cries his heart out while Chanyeol holds him as if his life depended on it. 

When Baekhyun’s cries are toned down, Chanyeol leans away to look at his face. He reaches to wipe the barista’s tear stained cheeks and offers a bottle of water to calm himself down. 

“You okay now, my baby?” Chanyeol asks, he’s using his low register, that voice that makes Baekhyun shiver down his bones. 

Baekhyun is hiccuping from crying so much. He nods after drinking the water and he looks at Chanyeol’s eyes. Without words, just love. And Baekhyun needs to feel it more, needs to claim what he’s missed so much. 

They stare at each other for a while, before Baekhyun leans in to kiss his boyfriend full on the lips, lingering and oh so tender. Baekhyun arches his back at the sensation of their first kiss in a week and Chanyeol, he’s trying so hard to control himself from attacking the smaller man. They savor the moment. So full of emotions surrounding them with a cloud of euphoria. 

When the air in the room becomes too hot and the drumming heart beats come together as one, they give in. 

Kisses become more urgent, soft moans taking turns in escaping each of their lips, as if they speak a certain language and their hearts completely understand. Chanyeol’s hand becomes daring, sliding inside Baekhyun’s satin shirt. The smaller gasps for air at the contact of Chanyeol’s rough palm to his bare back but Chanyeol doesn’t stop attacking his face with lewd kisses. Baekhyun’s hips shake a little, feeling the discomfort in his nether regions and Chanyeol feels proud that he’s the cause of it. 

“You look so hot today, baby.” Chanyeol whispers hotly against his ear.

“Your ex-girlfriend is really good at styling.” Baekhyun chuckles softly, raking his hand through Chanyeol’s hair and grabs the taller by his cheeks to kiss his lips again. 

Their open mouthed kisses become a little more impulsive, tongues poking out to taste every bit of their mouths, all while their hips sway to the music of their heart beats. When they part for air, Chanyeol takes the opportunity to undo the buttons on his boyfriend’s shirt. The director gazes at soft milky white skin before him, thumbing the expanse of Baekhyun’s chest down to his ribs. 

“Joy and I are not getting back together. Please believe me?” Chanyeol almost pleads, Baekhyun is conflicted. The things Chanyeol’s thumbs are doing now take away the little sanity he has, and Chanyeol’s pleading is enough to tip him over the edge and go crazy. 

With urgent nods, he grabs on Chanyeol’s face again and slams their lips with so much passion, Baekhyun reaching to undo Chanyeol’s shirt as well. The director may have found the gesture too slow because in a snap, he rips off the buttons himself and loses the shirt. Baekhyun giggles softly and it fuels Chanyeol’s drive more, hauling Baekhyun to lay on the couch, attacking his chest with kisses, with fervency to his pink nubs. 

Baekhyun arches his back and moans, quickly covering his mouth out of embarrassment from the noise he just made. Chanyeol notices quickly, reaching up to remove the barista’s hand off his mouth, while purposely nipping on one bud. It earns him a low grunt, the sexiest sound to Chanyeol’s ears. 

Chanyeol, as a passionate man of music, finds delight whenever he makes music from scratch. The satisfaction of finally hearing what he worked hard for, is beyond what any material things in this world can offer. 

And that’s what he is doing now. Baekhyun’s moans and grunts and whimpers blend together to form a musical masterpiece that only Chanyeol can formulate. Chanyeol gets addicted to the sound his boyfriend makes and gets intoxicated by the taste of Baekhyun’s skin against him. 

In no time, both of them are stripped off of clothes, finding those pieces of material restricting and unnecessary to the desire they’re giving into. Baekhyun pulls Chanyeol for another kiss, one of the many passionate kisses they share that night, while Chanyeol prepares Baekhyun for what's to come. 

Baekhyun welcomes the director between his legs but the way Chanyeol noses and kisses his inner thighs with so much attention and tenderness, stirs something inside of him. 

Baekhyun trusts Chanyeol the way Chanyeol trusts him.

With bated breath and sweaty palms, he reaches for Chanyeol and runs his hand tenderly along his soft hair. Chanyeol looks up and instantly gets mesmerized by the face Baekhyun is making, crawling up to see it closer. 

They stare at each other so lovingly, Baekhyun’s hand caressing the director’s cheek and he nods. A signal that Baekhyun is ready for his taking, and Chanyeol smiles so affectionately and kisses him with so much love. Baekhyun clings to Chanyeol’s shoulders, while Chanyeol slides in carefully, slow and steady. The whimpers Baekhyun lets out are Chanyeol’s cues to pause and let his baby breathe and relax, his hand stroking the expanse of his thigh to ease the pain away. 

Chanyeol is such a careful lover. 

When they’re molded as one, Chanyeol peppers kisses into Baekhyun’s face, giving time for the barista to adjust to his size as he waits for him to give the signal to move. It didn’t take long though, Baekhyun feeling so full drives all of his heat into the ceiling and he wants to feel Chanyeol, he wants to be claimed. 

They make love, passionate and beautiful love. Like a melody of feelings, a swing to an andante tempo, a harmonious motion of bodies, craving for that wonderful release. They move together, picking up a pace towards an increasing dynamic, hungry for that delicious buzz from the inside, until their breathings get ragged, cries of each other’s names becoming discordant, their echoing gasps filling the air beautifully. 

And then they reach their peaks, like the loudest part in a song, so powerful and arousing to the soul. 

Their bodies give in to the exhaustion, sweaty and sticky but both so satiated and full. Chanyeol lays his head on Baekhyun’s chest, breathing hard for air. He looks up and kisses along Baekhyun’s jaw, until Baekhyun moves his face so he can kiss on the lips. Chanyeol lets the kisses linger, lazy but still so tender. 

“You feel so good, baby.” Baekhyun softly whispers to the director’s ears. 

Chanyeol locks eyes with his boyfriend, that longing look piercing through Baekhyun’s chest. 

“I missed you, my baby.” Chanyeol declares, with so much emotion that Baekhyun is left astonished. Chanyeol is such a perfect boyfriend. 

Baekhyun’s still throbbing heart rate increases once again at this confession. Chanyeol, a man of few affections, just declared how he missed him. Baekhyun almost tears up again, bringing a hand up to stroke his boyfriend’s hair. 

“I missed you too. So so much. Sorry I’ve been so dramatic. You did great earlier, baby. I’m so proud of you.” Baekhyun’s words are soft, lulling Chanyeol to sleep. 

“The album launch or us having sex?” Chanyeol playfully asks. 

Baekhyun blushes and punches on the director’s shoulder. “Of course I meant the album launch, you perv!”

Chanyeol feigns pain, and Baekhyun is quick to rub on the part where he punched, apologizing for it. The director steals a kiss while Baekhyun is distracted and man-handles him so that both of them are lying on the couch, face to face. 

Chanyeol’s grin softens to a serious gaze, tender and warm. He takes Baekhyun’s hand and kisses it. 

“Do you know what I told my mom when I announced to the family I’m dating someone?” Chanyeol noses Baekhyun’s cheek as he speaks softly. 

“What did you tell her?” Baekhyun asks. 

“I said I’m dating a ball of sunshine.”

Baekhyun blushes at the words. Chanyeol looks at him seriously. “Baek, I didn’t ask you to date me just because of your availability. You make me happy and comfortable, and I have never been more relaxed with a person before. Just you.” Chanyeol’s words are so assuring, Baekhyun feels like crying again. 

“You’re more than what you think you are, Baekhyunee. I hope you know that. If not, then I will help you realize. Just...no more running away from now on, please?” His tone is pleading, and Baekhyun answers not because he feels bad for his boyfriend, but because he’s sure of it now. 

“No more running away.” Baekhyun pouts cutely and nods.

“And please, no more impulsive break-ups before we can even talk it out.” Chanyeol rolls his eyes, Baekhyun giggles and nods. 

“I was hoping no more break-ups, period? Hehe. ” Baekhyun grins widely and Chanyeol chuckles, nodding at him. The barista moves closer to the director, burying his face into the crook of his neck and they stay like that for a while, until they hear loud knocks from the door. 

“Yah, are you done now? Can we please go now!? Everyone is waiting for you at the party, just so you know.” Sehun nags from behind the door, and the two lovebirds scramble to get cleaned and dressed for the party. 

  
  
  


EPILOGUE

After visiting the cafe and receiving congratulatory praises from his former boss, Baekhyun decides to visit his hard working boyfriend. 

Two knocks on the door of the recording studio makes Chanyeol look up and instantly smile so wide in pure shock. He’s busy mixing a new song, something he would reveal to the world when the right time comes. 

“Coffee for Mr. Loey.” Baekhyun shows the coffee cups in hand, both with notes stuck in the center, a huge smile on his face.

“You’re here! Why are you here so early?! I was supposed to come to your apartment later. We have plans for dinner, remember? And I’m sleeping over so I can drive you to the airport tomorrow.” Chanyeol makes grabby hands at the shorter man, insisting him to sit on his lap, “for easier access to the coffee”, as Chanyeol justifies. 

Baekhyun nods and makes himself comfortable on the director’s “chair”. 

“I know, but I’m sad again this morning. I’m gonna miss you so much so I have to spend the rest of my time with you. Don’t worry, I won’t disturb you. You just keep working, I’ll be here, like a ghost.” Baekhyun nods, trying to be convincing.

Baekhyun got accepted into the patisserie school he applied for. Thanks to his wonderful portfolio and his very supportive boss, he’s flying to Paris tomorrow to attend a prestigious culinary school. Chanyeol didn’t take it too well when he first announced it to him. He stopped talking to him for two hours even though they had dinner and cuddled on the couch like always. Just pure silence. 

Baekhyun let his boyfriend take in the announcement and waited for him to accept it. Eventually, Chanyeol understood and fully supported him on his decision, with the conditions that they Facetime everyday after his classes, and Sunday is Loey day. 

Chanyeol pouts and wraps his arms around the smaller. “I don’t want you to be a ghost. You have the tendency to make fun of my naked dancing skills. I’m gonna miss you too, though. I think you know how much I will. But hey, it’s only for six months, baby. And besides, I told you I’m going to visit you once a month until it’s time for you to go home. To me, of course.” 

Baekhyun sighs and nods, burrowing into Chanyeol’s neck for warmth. “You are my home.”

And just like any other time, they kiss. A lot. But before anything could happen, Baekhyun pulls away and stands up. He doesn’t want to tarnish Chanyeol’s workplace. Chanyeol’s been vocal about how sexy Baekhyun sounds when he’s climaxing. Baekhyun thinks a recording booth to do such lewd things is the last thing he wants. 

With a teasing lilt, Baekhyun points at the booth and asks for his boyfriend’s permission if he could come in. He skips to where the microphone is and pretends he’s a recording artist. Chanyeol laughs at his boyfriend’s playful antics. 

“Ah. Ah. Is this working?” Baekhyun tests the microphone. 

Chanyeol clicks on his microphone button. “It’s working well, artist-nim.”

Baekhyun jumps at his boyfriend’s voice, echoing around the booth. He giggles and starts singing Live High, but messes because he doesn’t know the English lyrics too well. 

Chanyeol is having a fit of laughter watching his boyfriend having fun inside his recording booth. He did not forget to click the record button too. 

“Artist-nim, please choose a different song. One that you know the lyrics to?” Chanyeol tries to sound professional as if talking to a real recording artist. 

“Well okay, do you have any suggestions, director-nim?” Baekhyun tilts his head and stares cutely at his boyfriend from the glass pane. 

Chanyeol clicks the button to Mic On. “Hmmm, how about the song “Wait”? Chanyeol watches how his boyfriend is taking the song suggestion so seriously and this is when Chanyeol realizes how madly in love he is to this person. The actual sun to his dark days, the person who makes everything in his life full of color.

Chanyeol clicks the button to Mic Off, looks at his giggling boyfriend and speaks softly, “I love you, Byun Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun gestures that he doesn’t hear that last bit he said. “Hey director-nim, your mic was off. What did you say?”

Chanyeol shakes his head, turning the mic on. “Nothing artist-nim. You can proceed with your song now.”

Baekhyun shrugs and gets in position to sing. Chanyeol plays an accompaniment he found on the internet and watches as his boyfriend clears his throat and prepares to sing. Baekhyun misses the first note and apologizes to the director. 

“I messed up. Sorry, director-nim. Can we do it again?”

“It’s alright, artist-nim. Do you want to sing acapella instead?” Chanyeol asks and Baekhyun nods.

“Alright. I’ll remove the accompaniment. Any other requests, artist-nim?” Chanyeol clicks on buttons and adjusts knobs and volumes here and there, waiting for the response from his artist. 

“Yes, I do actually.” Baekhyun’s words make the director look up curiously. 

“What is it?” Chanyeol asks. 

“Well...I love you too, Mr. Loey.”

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> *Daei - In reference to 191207 Knowing Brothers episode where Chanyeol reveals Daei is Baekhyun's name on his phone
> 
> **Dwaeji - korean translation of pig. In reference to 181118 It Live 12th MUGI Box with Exo. A pig stuffed toy was thrown at Baekhyun and hit Chanyeol's hand while he was talking, Chanyeol asked what it was and Baekhyun answered with the cutest tone. "Dwaeji," he said.
> 
> Hello, this is my first time writing for BAE, thank you for reading the whole thing. I know I lack so much (I'm not a writer, just a fic-reader), especially when it comes to fluff, but I hope you had fun. 
> 
> To my prompter, I hope I gave justice to your prompt. Thank you for your prompt!
> 
> To my beta reader and cheerers, who helped me get through writing while life is happening, thank you so much. 
> 
> Thank you to you my dear baecon, for loving this ship, and supporting Chanyeol and Baekhyun in all of their activities. Like you, I wish them nothing but happiness.
> 
> YOURS and DELIGHT IS COMING SOON!
> 
> [Mod note: Your fic got posted after Yours and Delight came out dear author><" Stream it baecons! (๑♡3♡๑)]


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